Becoming Brendan
by Sapphire Skylines
Summary: Six years after becoming the Pokemon Champion, Brendan turns 18 years old. He goes on a new adventure only to discover new feelings for one of his long time rivals. The return of Team Aqua and Magma also land a huge threat on the Hoenn Region that Brendan must stop. Will he succumb to the pressure? Or will he learn that there is more to life than being the very best?
1. Happy Birthday!

"_Happy 18th Brendan!" _All Brendan could hear were the creaks of the stairs as his mom ascended the staircase. He'd slowly open his eyes, noticing the bright sunlight that poured through the window. Brendan put on the best smile he could muster before looking over at his mother, who made it to the top of the stairs. Brendan's mother held a chocolate birthday cake in her hands with eighteen candles on it and an image of a Pokeball. Brendan's smile turned into a grin as he covered his face in embarrassment.

"Mom! You really didn't have to do that." he'd let out a small chuckle as his mother now stood by his bedside. "Oh but I wanted to. It's not everyday that your son turns 18. Not to mention, you have been the Pokemon Champion for a full six years! Can't you believe that honey?" Brendan sat straight up in his bed as he looked at his mother. He'd yawn and stretch his arms before speaking.

"Honestly, yeah. I can't believe it. I mean, when I went on my Pokemon adventure when I was 12, I figured I was going to achieve a lot of things, but not take the title as Champion." He'd yawn again as he slowly squirmed out of his bed, now standing next to his mother. "So, I take it that the cake is my breakfast?" His mother giggled "Yep! Don't take this opportunity for granted now, I rarely serve you cake for breakfast." Brendan followed his mother down the stairs, still drowsy from just waking up. As he walked down to the first floor he noticed a Slaking wandering around the kitchen. Brendan scratched his head before realizing that it was his father's Slaking. He'd grin and walk a little faster as he reached the kitchen table, only to notice his father waiting for him.

"Hi son!" Brendan quickly ran over to him, and gave him a tight hug. "Dad! Aren't you supposed to be getting the gym ready to open?" Brendan's dad, also known as Norman let out a chuckle. "Oh don't worry son, the gym is already ready to open when I get back. I couldn't miss eating cake with my Brendan on his birthday." Norman smiled as he looked over at his wife, who was cutting three slices for the family. "Besides, your mother is a wonderful baker." Norman sat back in his chair as Brendan rested his elbows on the table with his head cradled in his hands.

Brendan's mother served the cake slices before sitting down, she'd smile at her family as she took a bite of the cake. "So are you going Wally's Master Rank contest? Sounds like his Gallade might have a chance in this." Brendan nodded as he chowed down on his breakfast. "Well yeah, of course I'm going to be there, I help coach Wally for contests." Brendan smiled as he slumped back into his chair. Norman would then chime in.

"Oh, so is May going to be there?" Brendan shrugged "I'm not entirely sure, she's been so busy with field work lately that I doubt she'll make it out, but she said that she'll watch the show on TV if she can't." Brendan continued eating bites of his cake until he heard the sound of his cellphone ringing upstairs. "Um.. I'll be right back." Brendan got up and rushed to his phone, running up the stairs and taking a quick turn to his desk. He'd pick up the phone, recognizing the caller ID as Wally before clicking the answer button.

"Hello?" There was a short pause before Wally spoke from the other line.

"_Uh.. h.. hi.. Brendan?" _Brendan would smile and glance down at his desk, something about Wally's voice or the stutters that he made comforted him. Brendan walked over and sat back down on the side of his bed. "Yeah.. hey there Wally, are you ready for the master rank tough contest today? It's going to be a close one."

"_Mmhm! I'm really excited, Lilycove City is a great city. I love the beaches." _Brendan nodded to Wally's reponse. "Good! Good.. you fed Gallade some yellow pokeblocks right?"

"_Yeah... I did. Oh! Y.. you're coming to the Pokemon Catching ceremony that your dad is holding, right?" _Brendan paused, he almost forgot about the ceremony. Every year, Norman gave children between the ages of 10 and 12 a Zigzagoon to catch a Pokemon of their own, just like he did for Wally those six years ago and this year, the ceremony just happened to be on Brendan's birthday.

"Oh crap... I almost forgot! Yeah of course I'm going to be there, once we're done helping the kids we can make our way to Lilycove, sound good?"

"_Yeah.. sounds good.. um... Brendan?" _Brendan laid his upper body on the bed while his legs hung off the side. He glanced up at the ceiling as he held the phone to his ear. "Yeah Wally?"

"_I um... I just want to say that... I miss you and I... gah... never mind, I.. I'll talk to you later alright? I'll see you in Petalburg." _Brendan smiled softly as he listened to Wally's words as he stared up at the ceiling fan.

"I miss you too.. but y'know, we're going to see each other in a few hours." Brendan raised his eyebrow for a moment, was something wrong? Wally generally never talked like this, Brendan never knew that Wally actually missed him, they did see each other regularly after all.

"Uh.. hey Wally, is everything okay?"

"_Y.. yeah! Everything's fine. Look, I gotta go, but I'll see you at the ceremony Brendan, I'll talk to you later." _Brendan opened his mouth to speak, but before he could let any words out he heard Wally hang up the phone. He sighed and set his phone on his nightstand before getting back up and walking back downstairs. He sat back down with his parents, only to notice that the two of them were grinning fiercely at him.

"Was that May?" his mother asked. Brendan raised his eyebrow, confused at why his mother was asking him that. "Nah.. it was Wally. He was making sure I remembered dad's Pokemon Catching ceremony today, plus we were talking about the contest and all that." Norman let out a chuckle before getting up and patting Brendan on the shoulder. "You always have a way of talking to Wally, I always knew that you two had a bond." Brendan scratched the back of his head, even more confused than before. "Well yeah, Wally and I have a bond, we're friends." Brendan finished the last bites of his cake as Norman walked over to kiss Brendan's mother on the cheek.

"It was a nice gathering, but unfortunately work needs to be done at the gym. I'll see you in a few hours son." Norman smiled and gave his family a two fingered salute before walking out the door, his Slaking following him from behind. Brendan sighed and lowered his head until he was looking at the wooden floor of the dining room. "Uh.. hey mom? I think I'm going to take a shower and all that. I want to see May, see how her Pokemon research is going with Professor Birch." His mother nodded as she began to pick up the dirty dishes to take to the sink.

"Sure, have a wonderful day son. Be careful out there, I know you and your Pokemon are strong but our world is very unpredictable." Brendan let out a small laugh, he knew all too well about the dangers and the horrors of the Pokemon world but he also knew that there was still good left in the world to keep fighting for. "Yeah, I know mom. I'll see you later. I'll be sure to give you a call when I'm in Lilycove." And with that Brendan journeyed back up the stairs and prepared himself for the day ahead of him.


	2. May's Words of Wisdom

Professor Birch's Pokemon lab was empty today. Professor Birch and his aids were out doing field work today, while May attended to the lab. She was cleaning supplies, putting them neatly on the shelves in the order that her father listed them in. May knew this lab in and out to it's entirety, she grew up in it after all. While cleaning a tool, she heard a knock at the door, making her drop all the supplies to the floor. She groaned in annoyance before walking over to the door.

"I'm sorry, Professor Birch isn't here right now." there was a short pause before she heard a familiar voice.

"Hey May, it's Brendan. I wasn't looking for the professor, I was looking for you. Can I come in?" May formed a small smile on her face. "You made me drop some supplies when you knocked on the door, but sure, come on in." Since the door was locked on the outside, she opened the door for him, allowing for Brendan to come in. Brendan glanced around the lab, it was spotless. Brendan never wanted to admit it to May, but he thought she was a total clean freak, especially when she was bored. Lab work was not her thing, she liked to go out, do field work, and explore the world. Brendan sighed.

"Wow... your dad is going to freak, I don't think I've seen it this clean before, ever... in the six years that I've lived here." May let out a small laugh "Thank you, want to sit down? What is it do you want to talk about?" Brendan nodded, finding a nearby lab table and two office chairs before sitting down in one of them. May picked up her supplies that she dropped earlier before sitting down with Brendan. "So... what's up?" Brendan shrugged "Oh not much really, aside from birthday stuff it's been the same old same old. Some people are acting kind of weird today, but maybe I'm just over analyzing. What about you? I came to ask how your studies were going."

May shrugged "Not much really. Steven found some cool fossils and stones that he donated to the lab, but other than that... not a whole lot. How are people acting weird?" May smiled softly as she rolled in her office chair.

"Well... I talked to Wally on the phone maybe a hour or two ago. It really sounded like something was on his mind, and he told me that he missed me. Then my parents acted strange, dad told me I had a special bond with Wally. Of course we have a special bond, we're friends, you know? Just like how you and I are friends, and how I'm friends with Steven." May's smile turned into a smirk as she listened to Brendan.

"Hm.. well mister Brendan, I think you and Wally do have a special bond. What kind of bond that is, well, I think you'll have to figure that out for yourself." Brendan now had an extremely confused look on his face.

"Now I think you're hiding something from me. Is Wally planning something?... Is he getting sick again? I hope his sickness didn't relapse." He looked down and tugged at the hair under his hat while his elbows rested on his legs.

"No! Don't worry about that, Wally hasn't had problems with his illness in years." May got up from her chair and walked over to a small fridge that was off in the corner on an end table. "Want some water?" Brendan sat back up and slowly began to relax again, Wally relapsing was probably one of his worst fears, aside from endangering his Pokemon. "Yeah, sure. Sorry I just worry, I don't want Wally to get sick again." May handed Brendan a water bottle as she sat back down. "How about I ask you a few questions, sound okay?" Brendan looked at May curiously. "Uh.. okay sure."

"Okay, first question. When you're with Wally, how does he make you feel?" Brendan sat there silently for a long time, he never thought about that before.

"Um... well, he makes me feel happy. I have a really good time with him when he's around. He always makes me feel better when I'm down about something and always encourages me to try my best. He always makes sure that I'm on the top of my game too, we regularly battle. I beat him most of the time, but at the same time he's a fierce competitor. He's improved a lot over the past six years. Um... overall I just feel... fulfilled, everything makes sense and he helps me remember that there are still good people in this world. Sorry if that was a long answer." May smiled and let out a small chuckle.

"It's okay Brendan, okay! Next question! When you're away from Wally, do you think of him often? How does he make you feel when he's away?" Brendan smirked "That was two questions." May then sighed and covered her face with her palm "Just answer the questions." Brendan sat back in his office chair and thought for a moment. He then thought back to the conversation that he had with Wally and how he said that he missed him. Did he miss Wally too, without realizing it?

"Hm... I guess I do miss him I just... always put that feeling in the back of my mind. Yeah I um... usually wonder what he's doing, what he's eating for dinner, where is he training today, I kind of worry sometimes, I admit, but I know he's a strong person, he overcame a medical condition and became one of the best trainers I know." May blushed and glanced down at the lab table.

"Wow... I really wish I felt the same way as you about someone. Love is a wonderful feeling." Brendan blinked.

"I'm confused, ever since I moved here all I've focused on was training my pokemon, becoming the very best, keeping my title as the Pokemon Champion of the Hoenn Region. I never had time for love, I don't even know what love is. Does it mean I want to kiss him or does it mean that I just happen to have a really close friendship with Wally?" May shrugged.

"Honestly Brendan, I wish I knew. I'm in the same boat as you, my entire life has been dedicated to Pokemon research. Maybe you should talk to Wally, tell him what you told me, how you feel. See if you can sort things out with him. I recommend doing it after the Pokemon contest." May got back up from her chair and went through her backpack, which was by one the desks, she'd then hand Brendan a large gift box.

"By the way, happy birthday. Just talk to him, and you're right, I do know something that you don't but I promised to keep my mouth shut. You're going to have to figure it out for yourself." Brendan frowned at May. He really wanted her to tell him what was going on, but he wasn't going to argue with her. He sighed and opened the present, inside was a large orange backpack. It had a ton of extra compartments in it that his old backpack didn't have, plus it was new with no tears.

"Thank you May! I've been really needing a new backpack for my travels. It even has extra slots for more items." Brendan got up from his chair and hugged her tightly, clearly happy with his gift. He then glanced down at his PokeNav, it was 12:30pm.

"Shit! May.. I need to go to my dad's Pokemon catching ceremony is in 30 minutes but I'll see you later, yeah?" May smiled, giving him a quick pat on the back before letting Brendan loose from the hug.

"Yep, see you later. I wish you luck in figuring your feelings out. Be open with Wally okay? Don't hide anything from him." Brendan nodded before opening the door "Be open... got it. See you May!" And with that he exited the lab and began his trek to Petalburg City.


	3. Rookies and Pros

Before heading to Petalburg, Brendan came back home to transfer the items from his old backpack to the new backpack that he got as a present from May. As he sorted through all of his potions, pokeballs, and items he uttered in annoyance.

"You say I should be open to Wally, when you aren't being open to me about what's going on... people sometimes." He continued to stuff items into the main compartment of the backpack until he discovered an item at the bottom of the bag. He shuffled his hand around in it until he pulled out a small black photo album, he turned the pages carefully. There were several photographs of himself with Wally, May, and Steven. He smiled, remembering the days that those photos were taken. He was surprised that May actually kept them. When he flipped to the middle of the photo album he saw a note and pulled it out of the plastic slot.

_Dear Brendan, _

_I watched you grow from a small, curious youth to a strong and intelligent young man. I remember the day you saved me from a group of wild Poocheyna with the Torchic that you chose. Now you and Blazikien are a force to be reckoned with, along with the rest of your Pokemon team. Brendan, as you grow older I hope you create new memories with your Pokemon and the people you love. I hope you find true happiness and that you continue to grow as gracefully as you have. Remember to keep filling your Pokedex. If you haven't noticed already the second half of the photo album is blank, use it for new photos as you continue on the exciting adventure called life. I will talk to you soon, I hope you have fun in Lilycove City with Wally. _

_Your Neighbor, Professor Birch_

Brendan continued to smile as he read the letter to the point that his cheeks almost hurt. A tear dripped down his cheek as he folded the letter neatly back up and slipped it back into the photo album. He figured it was the best place to keep the letter, at least for now. He then put the photo album back in the bag and continued packing the rest of his stuff before heading out.

He traveled the traditional route, going up to Route 101, Oldale Town, then Route 102. He sighed as he looked at the time on his PokeNav – 1:02 pm. He was a few minutes late. He started running when he was on 102 until he arrived in front of the Petalburg City gym. There was a huge turnout for the Pokemon Catching ceremony. Children from all over the region were eagerly waiting to catch their starter Pokemon. Brendan stood behind the sitting children and glanced around curiously until he saw Wally.

Both Brendan and Wally had updated clothing and looks since their first Pokemon Journey. Wally's hairstyle was for the most part the same, but wore a grey t-shirt and tan cargo shorts, as well as the mega necklace in the shape of a Gallade's head. Brendan never gave up his hat, but he wore dark denim jeans and a red t-shirt with a black long sleeved undershirt with his mega bracelet. Wally and Brendan locked eyes as Wally waved and gestured for Brendan to come up front. Brendan nodded and walked up to Wally as he searched for his father, who was no where to be seen.

"Hey.. where's dad?" Brendan asked Wally. Wally pointed over at the gym. "He's in the gym, he's just getting the Zizagoons ready." Brendan nodded and locked Wally into his arms, hugging him tightly. Wally hugged back, letting out a sigh of content. Brendan blinked and noticed that Wally was shaking as they hugged. He'd slowly let him go, eying Wally with a hint of concern.

"Wally, I hate to ask you again, but are you really, sincerely okay? You sounded like you had something on your mind this morning, and now you're shaking." Wally sighed and rubbed his right arm nervously.

"Honestly, yes... I've had a lot of my mind lately. There's just so many things that are confusing you know, how I feel, what other people say. Yet things seem so right." Brendan listened to Wally, nodding with a sigh.

"Yeah... tell me about it." The boys then heard the double doors of the Pokemon Gym open and close. Norman was pulling a cart with Pokeballs on them, carrying them to the front of the crowd. Wally looked over at Brendan as Norman pulled the cart on the lush green grass.

"We'll talk later, okay?" Brendan nodded at Wally's words and looked out to the crowd of children. Norman then walked up to the mic and tapped it a few times.

"Hm.. is this working? Looks like it is! Great." Norman would then lift the microphone from it's holder and glance at the children.

"Hello! Welcome to this year's Pokemon Catching ceremony. Today you will be catching your very first Pokemon friend and embark on your first Pokemon Journey. You will learn how to catch and battle Pokemon. Now... six years ago, my son over here, Brendan embarked on his first journey. He was just about your age and was just about as excited as you are today. Well now, Brendan here is the champion of Hoenn. One day maybe you will become a gym leader, an elite four member, or perhaps the champion yourself. You children have unlimited potential, do not let it go to waste."

The children watched in awe as they looked at Brendan closely. Brendan never thought that he'd ever to a role model to anyone, he still had so much to learn despite achieving so much. All of a sudden, one child raised his hand.

"Hey mister Norman, who's that green haired boy?" he gestured to Wally. Norman let out a chuckle.

"Let me get to that! His name is Wally and he's actually the reason that I do this ceremony every year. About six years ago, I let him borrow a Zizagoon and he caught a Ralts. Today Wally is an extremely skilled trainer and his Ralts has grown into a Gallade, who will actually be on TV tonight as he participates in the Master Rank Pokemon Tough Contest." The children clapped as Wally looked down at the grass and blushed, he was not used to having this much attention.

"Now kids, you're going to eventually battle with your own caught Pokemon, but how would you like to see a sample battle between Brendan and Wally, how about it?" The children cheered and constantly shouted "Do it, do it, do it!" Brendan sighed and let out a nervous chuckle as he scratched the back of his neck. Wally then walked up to the mic with a devious grin on his face.

"I'm going to destroy you Brendan!" Brendan let out a small chuckle as he backed away, making some space for the actual battle. "We'll see about that." Wally smirked and lifted up a small Pokeball from his belt.

"Go Garchomp!" Wally threw the Pokeball, which unleashed a fairly large looking Garchomp. Brendan thought for a moment before picking his first Pokemon. Without saying a word Brendan lifted up a Pokeball and tossed it out, unleashing another dragon type Pokemon – a Salamance.

The two rivals were in the battle for at least twenty minutes. Sometimes the battle was in Wally's favor, other times it was in Brendan's. It then became a very close match when the only two Pokemon that were left was Wally's Gallade and Brendan's Blazikien. Wally raised up his mega pendant, causing Gallade to mega evolve. The children gasped in awe as they saw the newly evolved form of Gallade. For some of the children, it was the first time they had ever seen mega evolution. Brendan then raised his wrist, allowing for his mega bracelet to react to Blazikien's mega stone, mega evolving him as well.

The battle was extremely close, though finally, Blazikien took out Wally's Gallade, claiming Brendan as the winner. The children cheered as Brendan grinned and wiped sweat from his forehead. Wally smiled, giving Brendan a thumbs up as Norman started to pull the pokeballs from the cart.

"Alright! Who wants a Zizagoon and some Pokeballs?" The children started to crowd Norman, and soon enough, all the children rushed out to 102, eager to capture their first Pokemon. Norman, Brendan, and Wally followed the children and watched them carefully to ensure that they were safe.

"Hey Wally, Brendan, great job out there. That was a swell battle." Norman rolled his shoulders as he watched the little people in the tall grass.

"No problem dad." Brendan sighed and took in the smell of fresh air as his hand wandered to find Wally's. Wally smiled as he felt his touch and took Brendan's hand into his. Brendan's eyes widened slightly as he realized they were holding hands. He didn't tug his hand away but he looked over at Wally with an apologetic look.

"Oh um.. I'm sorry." Wally smiled and stared into Brendan's grey eyes. "No really, it's okay." Brendan and Wally awkwardly stared at each other for a good three minutes before Norman spoke up.

"Boys... if you'd like to go, you're free to go. Thank you for helping out with the ceremony, have fun at the contest and be safe, okay?" Brendan looked the other way at his dad and gave him a nod.

"We will. I'll see you tonight or tomorrow dad." Brendan started to walk with Wally right beside him and for whatever reason Brendan could not let go of Wally's hand. It was almost as if their hands were glued together and they couldn't pull apart. Once they were a good distance away from the children, Wally turned to look back at Brendan.

"Uh.. so, want to fly from here?" Brendan looked down at Wally, who was a few inches shorter than him.

"Sure! But I need to go to Oldale Town and heal my Pokemon. They're pretty tuckered out from the last fight. I'll meet you there?"

"Sounds good." Wally and Brendan went their separate ways. Wally constantly looked at Brendan from behind as they gave each other awkward glances. Brendan sighed and looked down at the ground as he spoke to himself.

"Could this day get any weirder Brendan?"


	4. Confessions

The clear blue sky was perfect to fly through as Brendan's Salamence whipped through the air. Brendan looked downward and watched the tiny buildings and trees from above. Finally they reached what appeared to be a large port city. Brendan pointed down at the view.

"Salamence, land on the beach, will you?" The Salamence let out a cry and dove downward, landing on the pristine, white looking sand that connected land from sea. Brendan climbed off the dragon type Pokemon and returned him to his Pokeball, taking a deep breath of fresh ocean air afterward. Brendan then turned on his heel and headed toward the town. It was a typical day in Lilycove, there were several patrons at the shopping mall and museum, people were going from place to place, just doing their normal routine. Brendan sighed happily and looked around. He faced one problem, he didn't pick a meeting spot with Wally, so Wally could've been anywhere in the town. He looked around, considering that he might be at the contest hall already. Brendan was about to take his first steps towards the contest hall until he heard a voice.

"Brendan! Over here!" Brendan quickly turned his head around and noticed Wally standing near the Cove Lily Motel. "Hey there! I'm lucky I found you, we didn't exactly pick a meeting spot." Brendan walked over to Wally and eyed him up and down. "So! Should we set up camp before the contest?" Wally laughed and shook his head.

"Actually, I sort of have a surprise. I got some money together and rented out a suite at the Cove Lily Motel. They did some renovations a few years ago, they have a pool now, an arcade, a salon and spa for Pokemon. I figured we could change things up." Brendan smiled "Wow.. that's quite a surprise, thanks Wally. We could hang out here and then when you're ready to sleep, I can sleep on the couch or fly home. Suites have couches right?"

Wally let out a chuckle, but at the same time he sounded a little disappointed. Why was he disappointed? "Yeah, actually I think they have hideabeds." Brendan grinned "Neat! Let's get up to the room then, shall we?" Wally smiled weakly and nodded "Sure thing, captain." The two trainers made their way into the hotel. Brendan followed behind Wally as they went up two flights of stairs, and then down to the end of a hallway. They both stopped at a door labeled room '325'. Wally looked down at himself and dug into his pocket until he pulled out two room keys, handing one over to Brendan. "This one's for you." Wally then used his room key to open the door. The key made the lock click right before Wally pulled the handle.

Brendan's eyes widened in awe as he took in the beauty of the room. The furniture was fresh and modern, and the view through the wide, open windows was a magnificent view of the beach, along with a boardwalk leading to it. He smiled and stretched his arms as he explored the suite, which had a living room, a small kitchen, and then a master bedroom with a bathroom. Once Brendan made it to the bedroom, he fell face first onto the bed as he took in the fresh scents of the white bedsheets.

"I guess luxury every once in awhile, is pretty sweet." Brendan sighed and laid sideways on the bed. He relaxed until the sore muscles in his back started to act up, he squinted his eyes as he gripped one of the pillows. "I guess my back isn't used to such comfort.." Brendan let out a chuckle as Wally set his bag at the end of the bed.

"Y.. you um.. want me to give you a massage?" Wally asked as he looked down at the soft brown carpet. Brendan looked up at Wally as he sensed his nervousness.

"Sure.. um.. I've never been given a massage before." Wally made a small circling motion with his hand before asking Brendan to lay on his stomach. Brendan's mind was racing, what he agreed to was totally gay. Was he indeed gay? Was he attracted to Wally? Do friends give each other massages? He then remembered what May said, should he just talk to him about his feelings now? His eyes widened as he felt Wally lift his shirt up.

"Wally.. you want to pull off my entire shirt so it's easier?" Wally shrugged "Sure." Brendan lifted up his upper body so that Wally was able to pull his red shirt and black undershirt off from over his head. Brendan then plopped his upper body back down on the bed as Wally began to straddle him. Brendan then squinted his eyes in surprise as he felt Wally's warm hands begin to rub his upper back, kneading every knot that Brendan had. Brendan couldn't help but let out a groan as his entire body and mind was feeling things that he never felt before. At an attempt at being normal, Brendan cleared his throat and tried to start a normal conversation.

"Wally, how did you learn how to do this? This massage is amazing.." Brendan muffled into his pillow but Wally still understood what he was saying.

"Well... when I was really sick, my cousin Wanda always gave me massages, and then she taught me how to do them." Wally smiled as he thought about his cousin. "Oh, did I tell you that her and her husband Derek are expecting?" Brendan lifted his head at the news. He remembered the day fresh in his mind when his Blaziken, back then a Combusken, rock smashed the remaining rock in the tunnel connecting Rustboro to Verdanturf and made it possible so that Wanda was able to see her boyfriend Derek. Now the couple was married and having a child.

"No! You didn't tell me, that's awesome. So would that make you a second uncle then?" Wally smiled and shrugged "Hell would I know, that doesn't matter though, I'm still going to help take care of the baby." Brendan let out a soft moan as Wally started to work down to his lower back.

"Do you like babies Wally? I honestly haven't been around that many babies." Wally looked up at the ceiling in thought.

"Of course I do. I loved the idea of being a dad, but for the longest time I didn't think that was an option for me. When I was born, my life expectancy was 10-12 years. Plus, I've always figured no one would want to have kids with me. No one wants a partner who's frail and weak, whether they're a man or a woman." Brendan squinted his eyebrows and gently pulled Wally off of him as he flipped himself over onto his back so that he was looking up at Wally. Brendan stared into Wally's soft gray eyes as his arm crept over Wally's shoulder and neck.

"You're not weak or frail. Sure, you're a little smaller than most and you were extremely sick when I met you, but you overcame that sickness and you became one of the best Pokemon masters I know. That's true strength, and that's why I like having you around, as a rival and friend." Wally blushed profusely at his words.

"Th.. thank you Brendan.. I.." before Brendan could let Wally finish his words he pushed Wally's head downward and pressed his lips against his for a passionate kiss. Brendan's mind was racing even faster now. He had no idea what he was doing or why he was doing it, but it just felt right. He aggressively wrestled his tongue with Wally's while Wally was still in complete shock at Brendan's reaction. Wally managed to kiss back in the best way he could, gripping a handful of Brendan's hair as he worked his tongue with his.

_BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!_

Brendan's Pokenav started to go off. He'd groan at the Pokenav which was on the nightstand and ignored it as he continued to kiss Wally. Wally opened his eyes, muffling into his mouth.

"Ben'an it mig' be somefing importan' mmff.." Wally reached over and grabbed the Pokenav from the nightstand as he pulled away from the kiss. He looked at the Pokenav's screen with his eyes widened. "Shit! The Pokemon Contest. It's in thirty minutes." Wally quickly climbed off Brendan and furiously dug into his bag for his contest outfit. He rushed into the bathroom to put it on as if the kiss never happened.

Brendan sighed, he enjoyed Wally's soft thin lips but unfortunately that moment came to an end and he had to focus on Wally and Gallade's contest. At this point, something was very clear to him, he needed to talk to Wally, he needed to figure out his feelings with him. Brendan was indeed attracted to Wally, but did Wally like him in return? He then replayed their first kiss in their head. He smiled and sighed as he started to daydream on the bed. All of a sudden Wally walked out of the bathroom with a black suit on and a green tie. Wally waved his arms around frantically.

"Brendan! Come on, focus!" Brendan blinked out of the daydream as he looked at Wally in his formal suit.

"You're right, you're looking good! Um..." Brendan then went through his new backpack and pulled out a white button downed shirt, putting it on quickly while he still wore the same jeans. Wally let out a small laugh.

"Your shirt isn't buttoned right." Wally walked in front of him and started to button his shirt for him until it was straightened up. The two stared into eachother's eyes, still feeling the after effects of their kiss. Brendan scratched his deep brown hair as he checked the time on his Pokenav.

"Let's go." Both boys took their Pokemon and headed outside of the hotel, running as fast as they could to the contest hall. When they got there they rushed inside and saw a very irritated looking receptionist.

"... Can I help you?" Brendan panted before looking up at the lady. "Yes... contestant number 4 is here for the next contest." Wally looked up at the receptionist with a hopeful look on his face, he hoped that he wasn't too late.

"Great, glad you're finally here. Just make your way up the stairs. Contestant 4, Wally, get to back stage." she'd then glance at Brendan "And sir, the ushers will assist you in getting a seat, though most likely you're going to have to stand in the mosh pit since most of the seats are full." Brendan nodded and followed Wally up the stairs. Before they entered the performance hall, Brendan looked at Wally and patted him on the shoulder.

"Remember our training, okay? You're both going to do very well." Wally took out Gallade's Pokeball and released him. Gallade let out a cry of excitement as he stood by both trainers.

"Oh! One more thing." Brendan pulled out his pokeblock case and took out a small yellow pokeblock. He'd wave it at Gallade "I have a treat for you!" The Gallade grinned and happily ate the yellow squared treat. Wally smiled weakly and nervously took Brendan's hand and squeezed it.

"W.. we'll talk after the contest right?" Brendan nodded, squeezing Wally's hand back before slowly letting it go. "Of course." An usher then interrupted their talk and walked in between the trainers.

"Wally! Wally, come on, the contest is about to start, we need to get you back stage!" The usher dragged Wally by the hand as he gave Brendan one last wave, his Gallade following from behind. Brendan sighed and opened the doors before him. He followed a red carpet down to where the audience was, and another usher pointed him to the mosh pit.

Brendan stood in the middle of the crowd of people which varied from new ten year old trainers to elderly men and women. The mosh pit was not pleasant, at times Brendan was mushed between two or more people and the thoughts Brendan had about Wally that raced through his mind didn't exactly help either. The lights then started to dim as the red curtain on the stage started to open and reveal the contest judges as well as the host. The host was in a sparkly blue suit with a huge smile plastered on his face.

"Welcome everyone! To tonight's Master Rank Tough Contest! Today, we have four very strong and tough Pokemon but only one will come out on top, is everyone ready to see the contestants!?" The audience cheered loudly, this host knew how to rev a crowd up. Brendan all of a sudden felt a strange poke on his right shoulder blade. He quickly turned around and saw that May was right behind him. She waved and increased the volume of her voice as the audience was still cheering.

"Hey Brendan!" Brendan could barely hear May over the crowd but waved and gestured for her to stand next to him.

"Hi May! I wasn't sure if you were going to make it or not, glad to see you!" May simply smiled and nodded as the first contestant walked on stage. '

"The first contestant of the night is Katie and her Bibarel!" The audience clapped for the Bibarel as it walked onto the stage and then moved off to the side. May and Brendan watched the contestants curiously as they all came on stage.

"And for our second contestant we have Matt and his Marshtomp!" The audience seemed to cheer louder for the first contestant by a small amount. Brendan squinted his eyes as he looked over a few men that were taller than him.

"Contestant number 3 is our one, and only! Jasmine and Steelix!" the audience clapped loudly as the Steelix walked onto the stage. Brendan raised an eyebrow.

"Huh.. that Jasmine girl looks familiar." May shrugged "Well you were born in Olivine right? She's the gym leader out there." Brendan nodded "Ah... right, I think she became gym leader a few years before my family moved to Littleroot."

"And last but not least, our fourth contestant is... Wally and Gallade!" Gallade had a great reaction from the audience, but it wasn't clear if Gallade beat Steelix or not in audience reactions. Wally stood next to Gallade on stage and quickly caught eye contact with Brendan, but the contact broke when the host began to talk again.

"Now folks, remember to vote for your favorite, may the toughest Pokemon win! It is now time for the talent round!" May turned her head to look at Brendan. "You think we should vote now or later?" Brendan shrugged. "Maybe we should vote now... I need to get out of this stuffy room for awhile anyways. This mosh pit is killing me." May nodded and started to walk back out to the lobby, Brendan following behind. Brendan and May made it down the flight of stairs to the main room where there was a large box and small paper ballots that were stacked neatly. People were already crowding around it as they stuffed their ballots into the box. Brendan and May took a place in the line that was starting to form. May formed a smirk on her face.

"So... what did you think of the hotel suite?" Brendan bunched his hands into fists as the line quickly went by. "How did you know about the hotel suite May?" Brendan growled as May bit her lip. "Well, because Wally told me about it this morning." Brendan remained silent as he casted his ballot, he then walked off to the side and allowed May to cast her ballot. Brendan took May's wrist into his hand "We need to talk now." he tugged at May until they were just outside of the contest hall.

"That is a lie, because you were in your dad's lab this morning, cleaning! You remember when we talked?" May sighed and looked down as the grass. "Okay... it was a plan that was set a long time ago, when Wally was training Gallade for this contest." Brendan groaned in anger as he kicked a nearby road sign.

"I don't think you understand what I've been going through May! For six years, I've been focused on none other but my Pokemon, putting the rest of my feelings in the back of my mind. Things were simple back then because nothing else mattered aside from being the very best and stopping the eco-terrorists from destroying the Hoenn Region. I like, and might even love Wally. When I'm around him he gives me clarity of what's important, and while Pokemon is important, being a good person and role model is important as well. If I was good at Pokemon but not a good person, I might as well just be like Maxie or Archie." Brendan sighed as he plopped down on the front lawn of the contest hall. May scratched the back of her neck nervously, she had never seen Brendan this upset in her life.

"I had feelings for Wally and I didn't have the guts to snap to reality and to actually confess how I feel. I really want to tell him so bad, but at the same time I don't want to lose him." Brendan buried his face into his knees as May crouched down to be at head level with him.

"Brendan, you're overwhelmed right now, take a deep breath. You need to get it together, Wally is in there trying to win a contest right now! And I am sincerely, really sorry, I promise that I won't hide anything, anymore about the situation. You won't lose him, he loves you too much to let go. He has suffered through the same tribulations that you have gone through. And I can assure you, when you guys talk and clear things up, that a weight will be lifted off both of your shoulders." Brendan took a deep breath, like May told him to do as he began to look towards her with a big smile.

"Really? He um... likes me back?" May nodded and took Brendan's hands as she pulled him back up to a standing position. "He does... but you'll talk to him soon, we have a contest to watch, right?" Brendan grinned and let out a small laugh. "Yeah! Let's go back inside... sorry I acted so angry." May nodded and patted him on the back. "It's okay Brendan, things happen." The two friends walked back into the contest hall and made their way back to the mosh pit to watch the rest of the contest.

The talent part of the contest had a total of five rounds. Each Pokemon took turns showing off their tough moves that they practiced with their coordinators. Finally when the fifth round was over, the host stepped onto the middle of the stage.

"Alright everyone! Now that the votes are in, and that the talent part is over, the judges will now tally the points and claim the winner! Take it away judges!" A spotlight then casted over the three judges. Wally was on the stage next to his Gallade who for the most part looked chill, despite this being the most nerve wracking part of the entire contest. An older male in a gray suit stood up from the judges tables with a few notes in his hands.

"We have a winner! In fourth place is Matt and Marshtomp!" Both the young boy and his Marshtomp looked extremely disappointed.

"In third place is Katie and Bibarel! And coming in at second place is Jasmine and Steelix! Which leads me to the winner of the master rank tough contest, Wally and Gallade! Come on up here and take your ribbon!" The entire crowd cheered as Wally walked towards the judge. The judge smiled and placed a yellow ribbon on the Gallade who let out a cry of happiness.

Soon enough, the audience started to evacuate out of the performance hall to the lobby. Once Brendan and May were in the lobby, they waited a few minutes as they stood in the middle of the sea of people who were leaving to go home. Brendan then peered up over the crowd and saw that Wally was getting an interview by a newscaster. Brendan slowly pushed his way through the crowd as May followed him.

"So tell me Wally, how does it feel to be first place with your Pokemon?" Wally laughed at the reporter as Gallade stood next to him.

"It feels great, Gallade and I put a lot of hard work into our training for contests and battle. We hope to participate again!" Wally stared straight into the camera as Brendan and May came up from behind him. The newscaster then gasped and started to turn red as she noticed Brendan.

"Wait! There's been a new development here at the contest hall, Champion Brendan is here! He was in the audience it looks like." the cameras then started to focus on Brendan as he walked over to Wally. He looked down from the flashing lights, despite being in the lime light for six years, he was still not used to the media attention. Wally forced a smile on his face and took Brendan's hand.

"Oh yeah! He's my friend, he helped me train for the contest." the newscaster grinned and looked over at her camera man "I hope you're getting this Ryan." Brendan and Wally stood in front of the camera as the newscaster asked Wally another question.

"So how long have you known the champion Wally?"

"Six years! He got me into Pokemon Training, but um... we really need to go, thank you miss! Gallade can't wait until the next contest!" With that, Wally tugged Brendan along, away from the paparazzi as May followed the two outside. As soon as the coast was clear, Wally returned Gallade to his pokeball. Sweat dripped down his cheek as he took a breath of fresh air. May and Brendan stood next to him in concern before May started to talk.

"Wally, are you okay? Do you need to sit down?" Wally looked over at May. "Nah! I'm fine, there was just... no oxygen in that crowd. Thank you for coming May." Wally walked over to May and hugged her tightly. "No problem! I really wanted to come see you. So um... I should probably leave you two be, I need to head back to Littleroot, dad is probably wondering where I am. You should give your parents a call too." Brendan nodded at May as she started to walk off. "Alright! Bye May! Have a good night." Brendan sighed as he looked at Wally.

"You um... want to head to the lighthouse or something? That tends to be a quiet place." Wally nodded down at the ground shyly. "Yeah.. sure." The two boys walked side by side the entire way in dead silence. Nothing else was heard except for the roaring waves of the sea and the chirps of small bird Pokemon. The tension was high as the boys neared the tall white lighthouse that's light looked onto the ocean. When the boys found a place next to the building, Brendan took a deep breath and gathered his thoughts.

"Wally... I just want to say first and foremost that I'm sorry I kissed you earlier today. I'm also sorry that I've acted like a total weirdo around you the entire day." Brendan sighed as he stared into Wally's eyes.

"When I'm with you, I feel like everything makes sense. Your smile, your soft gray eyes, the way you say my name... it brings me peace and happiness, like a calm to a really bad storm. I love you so much Wal..." Wally hugged Brendan tightly and pressed his lips against Brendan's as the crescent moon and stars illuminated the sky. He grabbed a handful of Brendan's dark brown hair as small tears of happiness dripped down his cheeks.

"I love you too Brendan, so very very much.." Wally clinged onto Brendan as he ran his fingers through Wally's green hair. Brendan moved his head down and whispered into Wally's ear. "You want to head back to the hotel?" Wally nodded as Brendan lifted Wally into his arms and carried him the entire way back to the suite.

Brendan carefully set Wally down on the bed before laying down with him and letting out a yawn. "Mmn.. I wish I didn't have to go home, I want to stay here with you." Wally smiled happily as he nuzzled his head into Brendan's chest.

"Then don't go, you can spend the night." Wally's smile turned into a grin as he pecked Brendan on the lips. Brendan let out a small laugh "Yeah... but then I have to head back home tomorrow." Wally shrugged as he climbed back out of the bed and started changing into a t-shirt and boxers in front of Brendan. "Don't worry about that, we'll have a lot of time together tomorrow." Brendan grinned like an idiot that just won a carnival game as he changed into a pair of sweat pants. "Yeah, you're right." Brendan then flicked off the light as the two of them climbed into bed together. Brendan yawned as he felt Wally wrap his arms around him.

"Good night Brendan, I'll see you tomorrow." and with that Brendan drifted off to sleep in pure bliss.


	5. The Mystery Boy

Brendan slowly opened his eyes to a bright light that illuminated through the wide open windows of the suite. It was morning and Brendan felt at peace as he heard nothing except for the sound of wild Wingulls that were chirping outside. He looked down at himself as he laid on his back and discovered Wally who was in a deep sleep with his head on Brendan's chest and his arms wrapped around Brendan's torso. Brendan sighed happily and ran his fingers through Wally's messed up hair. He considered waking Wally up, but at the same time he enjoyed watching him sleep. Brendan yawned and continued to run his hands down from Wally's head, to his neck, and then back until he felt a warm hand run up and down his arm as he heard a familiar voice.

"Good morning." Wally let out a small yawn and looked up at Brendan with a drowsy looking smile. Brendan leaned forward and gave Wally a deep kiss as he held a handful of his hair.

"Mmn... morning to you, angel." Brendan slowly sat up and pulled Wally into his lap. He ran his finger's down Wally's leg as he sat back against the headboard of the bed.

"You know, you have really nice legs." Wally let out a snicker at Brendan's comment.

"Well... you have nice abs." Wally playfully poked at Brendan's stomach with a giggle "Is that a four pack I see?" Brendan looked down at himself "No... sure I travel a lot but I don't think it makes me that fit. However, I'm strong enough to do this." Brendan grinned as he climbed off the bed and lifted Wally into his arms. Wally kicked around as he was lifted but quickly relaxed as Brendan carried him to the living room. Brendan sat back down on the couch with Wally in his arms. He rested his chin on Wally's head as he contemplated and thought.

"So... what would you like to do today?" Wally glanced up at Brendan curiously. "I don't care, as long as I'm with you, want to watch some TV for a bit?" Wally nodded "Sure.. turn it on." Brendan grabbed the remote from the glass coffee table and flipped the switch.

"_Hello and welcome to Trainer Talk! I'm Gabby and behind the camera is my trusty cameraman Ty! We have talked about countless trainers over the Hoenn Region, but today we are going to talk about a trainer that is very special to our hearts. We met this young man six years ago on Route 111 and now, he is the most recent champion of the Hoenn Region. We are of course talking about Champion Brendan!"  
_

Brendan pinched the bridge of his nose, he was interviewed countless times by the both of them but he hated whenever he was mentioned on TV. Wally looked over at Brendan and elbowed his shoulder. "Come on, they're just doing a trainer profile of you on live TV, it can't be that bad." Brendan sighed and stared back at the television.

_"Champion Brendan is an over achiever who saved the Hoenn Region from the looming threat of Team Aqua and Magma, and drove away the legendary Pokemon when they were about to cause conflict to our very environment! Brendan also of course made it to the very top by collecting all of our league's gym badges and took on the Pokemon League as well as Champion Steven Stone and succeeded! At 12 years old, he was the youngest trainer to ever grace Hoenn League's hall of fame." _

Brendan smiled weakly "Okay... maybe it's not so bad after all." Brendan continued to watch the show as he wrapped his arm around Wally.

_"Champion Brendan also loves Pokemon Contests. Brendan's main party includes Blaziken, Salamence, Gardevior, Absol, Gyarados, and Jolteon but we think he has a sweet spot for his Skitty who's lovely nickname is Pearl! Pearl competes regularly in cute contests, so if you attend contests often, be sure to catch this cutie! She's usually seen wearing the cutest dresses as seen here!"  
_

A picture of Pearl came on screen in a pink lacey dress, Brendan sighed and covered his face in embarrassment. Wally smiled and nuzzled into Brendan's cheek "I got you Pearl for your birthday last year, remember?" Brendan pecked Wally on the cheek and nodded. "Yep I remember, best present I have ever gotten."

_"Brendan has an amazing fashion sense, don't you think Ty?" _Ty wasn't visible in the shot but Wally and Brendan could hear him. _"He sure does Gabby!" _Gabby continued to talk as the show went on.

_"Speaking of fashion sense, there have been rumors about Brendan's sexuality. As far as we know ladies, Brendan is single and ready to mingle... or is he really? Brendan just turned 18 yesterday and we can tell you now, puberty has done him some justice! But is Brendan gay? Some photo evidence says it's a possibility! For the past six years that we've known him, Brendan has been regularly seen with this strange mystery boy! Roll the photos?" _Each photo was of Wally and Brendan doing some sort of activity, all of these photos were from different years of their lives.

"Sh.. shit.. they have pictures of me? How do they have pictures of me?" Brendan growled under his breath and sighed "I have no idea Wally, I could've swore there were no cameras around during those times."

_"Hm... fishing, Pokemon battling, and just having a good old time! Brendan and this mystery boy sure know how to have fun. But this boy is no longer a mystery, his name is Pokemon Trainer Wally of Petalburg City. Many have claimed that these two are just friends, but we will never know until we hear from the horse's mouth, which we haven't yet. So far Brendan's sexuality remains a mystery, but as far as we know ladies, Brendan is still on the market. That's all we have for today! Thanks for watching Trainer Talk, I'm Gabby and behind the camera is my cameraman Ty. Goodbye!" _The show then cut off and started showing different Pokemon commercials. Brendan frowned as he shut off the television.

"I'm sorry Wally, I never wanted you to be put on TV like that. Is it really that obvious though? Do I really seem that gay to everyone?" Wally shrugged and hugged Brendan while they were still sitting on the couch.

"Just forget what they said. I hope my parents didn't watch it though, they'd kill me if they found out I was gay." Brendan blinked as he looked over at Wally. "Really? When I met them they seemed like the nicest parents out there." Wally sighed and took his hand into Brendan's.

"They were really nice, you're right but they always believed that homosexuality was a sin. But now adays things are just really bad between my mom and dad, they always pick fights, drink too much, sometimes I'm afraid that they'll turn violent but they usually pass out before that ever happens." Brendan frowned and held Wally tightly in his arms.

"Wally... you never told me this. Why didn't you tell me about what was happening?" Wally shook his head "I didn't really want you or anyone else to worry. It's not exactly a good subject to talk about with your friends, but now since you're my boyfriend I figured that I should be more open about what's been going on in my life." Brendan blushed for a moment as Wally called him his boyfriend.

"Well... I'm sure my parents will be accepting, it'll be a shock to them at first but they'll warm up to it." Brendan sat back on the couch as he tried to think up a better subject. "Hey! You want to maybe go to the beach? We're at a hotel by the beach, we might as well. Plus Pearl needs to get some play time in." Wally let out a small chuckle. "Sure, I'd love to, but what about the cameras." Brendan squeezed Wally's hand. "Forget about the cameras, besides, I doubt that any interviewers will be out at the beach this early in the morning. There can't possibly be cameras all over Hoenn, that would just be creepy." Wally nodded "True.. okay! Let's go!" Wally giggled as he jumped up and rushed back into the master bedroom to change. Brendan sighed happily as he sat back on the couch and looked up at the ceiling, this day could not possibly get any better.

((Hey guys! I thought about making this a longer chapter and putting in the beach scene but I really wanted to post something on Valentine's Day, by the way, happy Valentine's Day! I just want to thank everyone for all the views that I've been getting. When chapter 4, Confessions came out the views for this story skyrocketed. I of course would love to get some reviews, but it's not required. As long as I see people reading my stuff, it makes me happy. Tune in for chapter 6! Thanks :D))


	6. Steven's Call to Action

It was a hot day on the Lilycove beach, despite it being early in the morning. Brendan knelt on the sand as he kept patting the two towels to straighten them. He then pulled out a small pink beach towel and put it next to the two larger ones. "Okay Pearl, this is your towel." Pearl, the Skitty let out a cry in protest and sat on the royal blue towel instead. "N.. nooo... that's my towel!" Brendan sighed and sat down on the sand "Fine.. anything for my pretty Skitty." Pearl mewed and climbed into Brendan's lap. Brendan smiled and lifted her in the air.

"Who is the prettiest Skitty in the world? You are!" Pearl meowed even louder as Wally walked over and carried two muffins and a bag full of oran berries. "Ready for some breakfast?" Brendan grinned and took one of the muffins from Wally "Of course, maybe sprinkle a few of the oran berries on the pink towel, that might make Pearl want to go over there." Wally shrugged and sprinkled a few berries on the small pink towel. Pearl happily hopped over and started eating her snack. Wally stretched his arms and sat on the green towel next to Brendan.

"Mmmf! The beach feels awesome today, good idea Brendan." Wally then grabbed a bottle of sunscreen from a beach bag and started putting a large amount on all over his body.

"Do you really need that much sunscreen?" Wally rubbed the lotion in as he looked over at Brendan. "Yep... my skin doesn't tan naturally like yours does. It's the downside of being as pale as a ghost." Brendan put a little sunscreen on his shoulders and face before laying back down on his towel. He'd glance over at Pearl who was devouring the berries.

"You want to play with your friends?" The Skitty let out a meow and jump in the air in excitement as Brendan took out five of his Pokeballs, releasing his Blaziken, Jolteon, Salamence, Gyarados, and Absol one by one. Gyarados went straight for the water while the rest stayed on land. Brendan flipped his sunglasses on as he watched his Pokemon interact with each other.

"Hey... where's your Gardevoir?" Wally looked over at Brendan curiously as he laid on his towel. "Oh, when I took Pearl out of the PC I put Gardevoir in her place. She's not really the social type." Brendan scooted over to Wally and wrapped his arm around Wally as he laid on his side. "Ah, okay... you think you'd ever breed her?" Brendan let out a small laugh at Wally's question. "Oh god no, to give you an idea as to how bad she is around other Pokemon, I let my entire party out of their Pokeballs and she immediately started fighting with Gyarados and Salamence. The only Pokemon she truly gets along with is Blaziken. She's way too aggressive."

Wally ran his fingers through Brendan's hair as he stared into his eyes. "Reason I ask is because I want to get an awesome gift for Wanda's baby, so I figured maybe a gift from both of us, from both of our Pokemon would be perfect. It'll keep the baby company, and later on in life it could be it's starting Pokemon." Brendan smiled big as if he was trying to contain laughter. "So you want to breed Gardevoir with Gallade? I don't know... your Gallade is super nice and playful while my Gardevoir is... well a bitch. Don't get me wrong, we can try it, but I'm not sure if it'll ever happen." Wally shrugged as he rested his head on Brendan's chest. "If it doesn't work out, we can always just catch a wild Ralts." Brendan nodded to Wally's response as he ran his fingers up and down Wally's back.

"Your skin is really smooth, you know that?" Wally shrugged "Not as smooth as yours." Wally scooted upward and leaned in to kiss Brendan. Brendan pressed in and savored every bit of Wally's taste until his phone started going off wildly in his bag. Brendan groaned and slowly broke away from the kiss as he reached around for his phone. He sighed as he looked down at the real ID.

"It's Steven, think I should answer it?" Wally laid back on his towel "Well yeah! Come on.. he might have found a cool new rock or something." Brendan sighed "Okay." Brendan clicked the answer button and raised it to his ear. "Hello?"

"_Hey Brendan! How was the contest yesterday?" _

"Oh! It was good, thanks. How have you been? I haven't heard from you in a few days."

"_I'm alright, I'm calling because I found a very important discovery in Meteor Falls, they're two Pokemon fossils, but they aren't just any Pokemon fossils." _Brendan remained silent for a few seconds, the fact that Steven found fossils in Meteor Falls piqued his interest, especially since most fossils were found in the desert.

"Well... what kind of Pokemon are they? Do you know?" Steven laughed over the other line, Brendan didn't exactly know what that meant.

"_Oh I think I know, and I'm telling you, these fossils are worth looking into, so do you think you can come over here as soon as possible?" _Brendan sighed and scratched his head.

"Um... I don't know, maybe in two hours?"

"_Two hours?! Are you on a hot date or something?"_ Brendan bit his lip as he sat up. "Um... maybe, just a little bit." Steven sighed and paused for a few moments.

"_Are you with May?" _Brendan pinched the bridge of his nose. "No! Gah... no... May and I are just friends. Why do you care anyways?"

"_N... nothing. Okay, fine. I'll meet you in front of the cave in two hours, sound good?" _Brendan nodded

"Sounds great, I'll see you then. Talk to you later."

"_Bye Brendan."_

"Bye." Brendan clicked the end button and set his phone back into the beach bag before turning his attention back to Wally. "I need to leave in two hours, Steven apparently discovered two very important Pokemon fossils." Wally smiled and poked at Brendan's cheek. "That sounds like fun." Wally rested his chin back on Brendan's chest as he looked up at him. "While you do that I'll have to go back home, make sure my parents aren't fighting." Brendan frowned as he rested an arm on Wally's back.

"You know, if things get bad you can always come to Littleroot or head to your uncle's right?" Wally smiled up at Brendan. "I know, Brendan?"

Brendan looked into Wally's eyes curiously. "Yeah?"

"I love you." Brendan grinned and pulled Wally back in for a kiss. "I love you too..." Brendan gave Wally's behind a tight grab as he finished the kiss. Wally squealed and let out a small snicker.

"Brendan!" Brendan smirked as he looked on at Wally's reaction. "You realize I've been wanting to do that for six years, right?" Wally sighed as he laid his head back on Brendan's chest.

"Yep, now I do." Wally hugged onto Brendan tightly as they rested in the sun. Brendan smiled and slowly got up, he picked Wally up and spinned him around as he headed toward the shoreline. Wally laughed and kicked around as he was carried. "I guess I should get used to being randomly picked up." Brendan smirked and carefully tested the water. "Hm.. this water is pretty cold, not sure if I should put you down or not." Wally sighed and kicked around in protest. "Just put me down."

Brendan slowly let go of Wally and stood next to him as the surf flowed onto the sand. Wally sighed happily and felt the fresh breeze circle himself and Brendan. Brendan looked down at Wally and held his hands as the water kicked up against their ankles. It had been at least a hour but it was almost as if time didn't exist. For the first time in awhile, Brendan was thinking about more than just himself and Pokemon. He wanted Wally to be happy, to feel loved, to be safe. The fact that Brendan was going to go on another archeological adventure with Steven while Wally returned to his parents bothered him. If they were going to fight, he wanted to protect him, even if Wally was capable of handling it by himself. He hugged Wally tightly as they continued to wade in the water.

"Wally... are you sure you want to go home? I can see if May is busy, maybe you could hang out with her." Wally smiled weakly and pecked Brendan on the cheek. "Don't worry about it, just enjoy the time that we have, I'll deal with my parents and after you do your thing with Steven at Meteor Falls, maybe we could go to Maulville City, get smoothies or something." Brendan shrugged "Maybe.." Brendan blinked and looked north as he noticed a strange figure head into the old rock cave formation that was once Team Aqua's base.

"Brendan... you okay?" Brendan scratched his head and squinted his eyes. "I'm fine... but I could have swore I saw someone go inside the old Team Aqua HQ. Maybe my eyes are playing tricks on me? I thought that place was abandoned." The old cave was in the distance, but it was close enough to see the basic details of it with the naked eye. Brendan sighed and shrugged it off. "Oh well, it's probably just me being paranoid."

Brendan held Wally even tighter as he ran his fingers up and down Wally's bare back. "I love you Wally, you're my little green haired angel." Wally let out a small laugh as he rested his head on Brendan's shoulder.

"I love you too, more than you could ever know."

((Hi guys! Things will be kicking up in chapter 7! I will also be starting another fanfic for Pokemon and it will be all about everyone's favorite Kalos protagonists, Calem and Serena, so stay tuned!))


	7. The Incident at Meteor Falls

"Hm... okay so you want ten max potions, a rope, five revives and a turkey sandwich? That will be 11,000 pokedollars please."

Brendan dug through his backpack and pulled out his old leather wallet. He shelved out the correct amount and handed it off to the cashier lady as he gathered his things. "Thank you sir for shopping at the Fallarbor Town Pokemart, have a nice day!" Once Brendan had his supplies packed he headed outside of the store and stood in the middle of the small farming community that was surrounded by volcano ash. It was the early afternoon and Brendan realized that he had not called his mother yet. He remembered that he promised her the day before so he picked up his phone and dialed the familiar number as he sat down on a bench next to the Pokemart.

"_Hello? Brendan?" _Brendan smiled as he heard his mother's voice over the phone. "Hi mom! Just thought I'd call and check in. How are you?" There was slight background noise on the other line that sounded like people talking.

"_Oh I'm alright, Professor Birch and his wife are over, and your father decided to stop by as well. Your father was going to invite Wally's dad over but he seemed preoccupied with something. How was the contest, speaking of Wally?" _

"It was great! Wally and Gallade won the contest, which wasn't much of a surprise there, I mean we trained non-stop."

"_That's awesome son! So... what have you been doing all day? I was expecting a phone call this morning, but something must have been occupying your time." _Brendan let out a nervous laugh as he leaned back on the bench.

"Um... well, I was spending time with Wally. We hung out on the beach and stuff."

"_I'm glad you got to spend some quality time with your friend. So, what are you up to now?" _Brendan coughed and cleared his throat as he smelled the volcano and mountain scents. "Well... I'm in Fallarboar Town right now, Steven said he discovered some fossils in Meteor Falls, so I'm going to head over there. Hey mom...?"

"_Yes son?" _Brendan hesitated for a moment before speaking "I was um... talking to Wally, and it sounded like his parents were having some disagreements, do you know anything about that?" There was a short pause before his mother began to talk again.

"_Well Brendan, between you and me, Wally's parents have been having some disagreements about their marriage as well as parenting Wally and other things. Unfortunately both of them were recovering alcoholics and they started back up again. It sounds like they might get a divorce soon. It's hard to upkeep a marriage and sometimes plans fall through. Even your father and I have had our ups and downs but know this, love is a precious feeling, it comes with bumps in the road but in the end if your love is strong you can get through anything with your partner. Romance is a strange feeling, and if you ever get into a relationship Brendan, please let me and your father know, we'd love to get to know the person. I will even make them dinner. Please be open with us, alright? I love you Brendan." _

"I love you too mom." Brendan rubbed his eyes, he had to come clean with her about his new relationship with Wally but somehow he couldn't. The thought of his parents not accepting him felt like thousands of knives piercing his heart, but he had to do it, he was going to do it soon.

"Well, I need to go mom. I'll talk to you later."

"_Sounds good son! I'll see you when you get home. Goodbye!" _

"Bye." Brendan sighed and hung up the phone before slipping it back in his backpack. He gripped the straps of his backpack and started to head to the mountains. The route wasn't a very long but the wrath of the hot sun did not give any mercy to the travelers today. He took out the turkey sandwich and started to eat it as he walked down the rocky pathway. Brendan wiped some sweat from his forehead before he continued, he climbed up a couple of rocky steps after he walked across a bridge that was over a lake. In the mountains he came across a young boy and his Linoone and Beautifly but won effortlessly. He healed the boy's Pokemon before continuing further in the mountains. He then saw a mountain climber, who gave him a speech about dehydration and handed him off a water bottle. Brendan patiently listened and thanked the man for the water but he was eager to get to Meteor Falls.

Finally the cave was in sight, and he saw a figure that Brendan recognized as Steven. Brendan started walking faster, he panted heavily and finally took his hat off in defeat. He stuffed his hat into his backpack and looked up at Steven, who for whatever reason looked free of sweat. Steven smiled at Brendan as he rested his back against the rock.

"About time you got here! Don't worry, the cave is much cooler inside." Steven had a large bag full of supplies for digging and exploring. "You ready?" Brendan couldn't muster much except for a nod. The two made their way into the cave, Steven leading the way and Brendan following behind. Brendan noticed little change in the cave since the last time he was there. On occasion he'd train here, if he was up for a good climb. Steven and Brendan reached the shore line to a small body of water that led to a waterfall.

"So... what were you doing this morning?" Brendan shrugged and smiled at Steven, he tried to play dumb but Steven wasn't buying it.

"You said you were on a hot date right? Was she hot? Oh by the way, we're going to need your Gyarados to climb this waterfall. I rock climbed up the last time I was here, but I figured we'd save time by just climbing the waterfall." Brendan covered his face with his palm.

"Yes.. -he- was very hot." Brendan paused and hesitated "I was with Wally." Brendan's voice started to lower and strain with hesitation. "I spent the night with him in Lilycove and we went to the beach... it was fun." Steven then did what any supportive friend would've done. He laughed so hysterically that he almost tripped. He gripped onto a large boulder before he was able to fall in the water.

"About time! I was wondering when you two were going to get together." Brendan groaned and released Gyarados from his Pokeball. "Why did you think I was with May earlier?" Steven shrugged as he climbed onto Gyarados, Brendan following him. "Oh no reason, she's single right?" Brendan thought for a moment, he knew she had boyfriends in the past but as far as he knew she was single.

"Yeah... I think she is. Why?" Brendan's Gyarados started to pick up speed as it surfed along the water. Brendan then glanced up at the waterfall and pointed up at it. "Gyarados, use Waterfall!" Gyarados did as it's master said and climbed the waterfall with Brendan and Steven on it's back.

"Well... she's a very mature, intelligent young lady. I wouldn't mind asking her for a drink sometime." Steven acted as cool as a cucumber but Brendan knew that Steven's dating life was pretty much non existent for as long as he knew him. Then again, his dating life was pretty non existent too until now.

"I don't think it'd hurt to ask her. Just don't compare her to your rock collection and you should be good." Steven rolled his eyes as Brendan's Gyarados rolled to the shore. He'd climb off while Brendan followed him.

"The hematite stones in my collection remind me of her eyes, but I know better than that. I almost got Cynthia to go on a date with me once!" Brendan blinked and returned Gyarados to his Pokeball.

"Cynthia, champion of the Sinnoh Region?" Steven nodded excitedly.

"Oh yeah! I had her under my fingers... until I spilled red wine on her of course, that was embarrassing." Brendan nodded slowly "Uh huh... anyways! Where are these fossils?" Steven gestured for Brendan to follow and took him up a staircase that was carved into the rock. The champions took several turns down a dark pathway, and then up another set of natural stairs until they came across a camp with two small yellow tents. Sitting next to each other, was a timid looking man in a lab coat, as well as a guy with wild black hair that looked like he just got out of bed.

"Brendan, I'm sure you remember these two. They are Professor Cozmo and Thomas, also known as the Fossil Maniac. You two remember Brendan, yes?" The two men both nodded. Thomas walked up to Brendan and hugged him. He squinted his nose as he accidentally smelled Thomas's sweat, which smelled like gym socks. Brendan smiled weakly and waved.

"Glad you can make it here Brendan! We have quite a discovery, you see... we think we might've found a Kyogre and Groudon fossil, right here... in Meteor Falls!" The Fossil Maniac seemed extremely excited, even for these circumstances. Brendan scratched his head and looked at the three men in disbelief.

"Kyogre and Groudon? Are you sure about that? I thought there was only one of each in the Hoenn Region." Professor Cozmo stood up. "Yeah, that's what we thought but apparently there's something that we don't know. These fossils don't match any other Pokemon. Take a look." Professor Cozmo gestured over to a small foldable lab table, pointing to what appeared to be just pieces from the rock face. Brendan squinted his eyes as the stones were under the artificial lab light. He eyed the patterns in the rock and bite his lip in focus.

"I'm not sure, you're going to take this to Devon Corp to be further looked at right?" Steven nodded. "Of course, out of all of us, my dad is the most interested. But you see what we mean, that appears to be part of a Groudon's claw and the fin of a Kyogre." Brendan nodded "Yeah, I do... if it is what you think it is, this would be a jaw dropping discovery.. it would change.." Brendan was then interrupted by the loud running of people from behind the group and then a man shouting behind them.

"Raise your hands! Those fossils are ours!" Brendan turned around to see a man and a woman. They were wearing black leather suits with masks. Something about them triggered Brendan to think of Team Aqua and Magma grunts, but their uniforms looked nothing like an Aqua or Magma grunt. Steven appeared surprised, but stood up straight. "No, you won't be getting near these fossils." The male bandit grinned and pulled out a Pokeball from his belt.

"We'll see about that. Sharpedo, go!" The Sharpedo appeared before Brendan and Steven as the female then raised her Pokeball. "Houndoom, I choose you!" Brendan sighed and stood next to Steven. "I'll help you take care of this." Brendan raised one of his Pokeballs, giving it a small smile before bringing out his Gardevoir while Steven released his Metagross from it's Pokeball.

"Gardevoir, use psychic on Sharpedo!" Sharpedo started to wail in pain as the psychic energy started to enter it's mind, despite the large amount of damage Sharpedo stayed up.

"Sharpedo, use crunch on Metagross!" The Sharpedo charged Steven's Metagross and bit into it's arm several times, but Steven used it as an advantage, commanding Metagross to swing it's arm so that the Sharpedo was flung against the rocky wall.

"Damnit.. Sharpedo return!" The woman sighed and shook her head. "I'll take care of this, Houndoom, fire fang on Gardevoir, now!" The large dog-like Pokemon started to charge Gardevoir as Brendan shouted. "Block it! Counter it with Moonblast!" Gardevoir quickly got out of the way, but the Houndoom kept charging until it eventually bit Gardevoir, causing her to get a burn. Gardevoir growled angrily and used Moonblast, taking out Houndoom in one shot. Brendan and Steven returned their Pokemon as they sighed in relief. The battle was over, they won, it was time for the bandits to go away. Just as Brendan expected the bandits to run, the male grabbed a small spray bottle, which looked similar to a hairspray bottle from his pocket.

"Screw this, we ain't gonna fail the boss this time!" The male bandit raised the bottle and sprayed an unknown substance into Brendan and Steven's eyes. Brendan coughed horridly as some of the substance went into his mouth. It stung, and attacked all of Brendan's taste buds. Brendan gripped his neck as the strange spray went down his throat as he fell over. His eye sight started to fade as he watched Steven fall over into a deep sleep. Brendan tried to open his mouth to get Steven's attention but somehow it was numbed shut. All Brendan could see in his faded vision was Steven's figure laying dead still on the cave floor. In the background Brendan heard chaos. Professor Cozmo and the Fossil Maniac were shouting, items at the camp were being knocked over, and Brendan couldn't make out what was going on, but it felt like a robbery or an assault.

All of a sudden Brendan's eyelids felt heavy, he tried his best to keep his burned, sore eyes open but finally his body gave up and drifted into a deep sleep next to Steven.

_Brendan's eyes shot wide open. He was in a dark, damp room, it smelled like mold and he could feel the wetness beneath his feet. Brendan blinked in panic, he was wearing no shoes. His arms were also hanging from something. Brendan tried to pull his arms free but something was hanging his hands up in the air. Brendan kicked and struggled, he tried to shout and scream but for whatever reason he couldn't do it. Brendan glanced around at his surroundings, he could barely make anything out, except that he felt like he was in a cave. _

"_Hello Brendan." Brendan gasped at the voice and looked around frantically for the other person but there was none. It was only an unknown, deep sounding voice. _

"_I've known you for a very long time and my... you have grown up so much. I almost thought the savior of Hoenn was a stoic, strong champion with no weaknesses, boy was I so wrong." Brendan struggled some more, but no matter what he did he could not leave, he had to listen. A bright light then filled the room and blinded Brendan, he squinted his eyes at the bright light. As soon as the light cleared, he was in an oddly familiar field of flowers. His eyes widened in shock, he was his normal self again and was standing in the middle of one of the flower gardens on Route 117, near Verdanturf Town. He then looked ahead and noticed the familiar figure of Wally run up to him and hug him. He grinned and let out a small laugh as he peered into Wally's eyes and ran his fingers through Wally's soft green hair as Wally just stared back at him with a friendly smile. _

"_He is your weakness and what a perfect weakness he is." The voice sounded through Brendan's head as Wally started to cough furiously. Brendan frowned in concern as he tried to look for Wally's inhaler, which was always in a small pocket in Wally's tan messenger bag but was thrown off in alarm as Wally began to cough up blood which sprayed out onto the delicate pink and white petals of the flowers. Wally then collapsed to the ground. Brendan looked around in panic._

"_H.. help.. can someone help? Please?!" The route was usually filled with people, but this time there was no one, only him and Wally. A chaos of sounds started to fill the air as Brendan started to hear frequent beeping and mechanical noises. _

"_HEELLP!" The voice in Brendan's head laughed in amusement, as if seeing Wally cough up more blood was just a game. _

"_They took it easy on you, you were only a child, but I will not take it easy on you. You fuck with me Brendan, and I will fuck with you. Stay out of my way!" The noises got louder and louder as the scene began to disappear in another chaotic bright light. _

Brendan let out a loud, high pitched scream as he woke up. He shook his head furiously in panic as a group of Pokemon Center nurses surrounded him. One of the nurses covered his mouth with a gloved hand as his blood shot eyes were wide open.

"Shh... it's okay Brendan, you're safe." Brendan breathed quickly and heavily but stopped screaming as he looked up at the nurses. He refocused his eyes and looked around, he was in a medical room in a Pokemon Center. Brendan's breathing slowed down as he carefully sat up in his bed. All the nurses except for one left the room as Brendan took in the details. There were medical machines everywhere that were used for Pokemon and people alike. Professor Cozmo and the Fossil Maniac were sitting at his bedside. He turned to his right and saw Steven through a glass window, who appeared to be talking on the phone with someone.

Brendan bit his lip as he looked over at the two men who were with him. He shook furiously.

"P.. Professor Cozmo, what happened?" The Professor ran his hand ontop of Brendan's hand which was warm in contrast with Brendan's cold skin.

"After you battled those thugs... they sprayed you and Steven with a mixed chemical which contained dream mist and a very harmful poison. What's scary is the nurses can't figure out the origin of the poison but they tested you and Steven to be fine, so they don't think it's deadly." Brendan frowned and wrapped his arms around his chest as he started to develop goosebumps on his bare skin.

"You have the fossils right?" Professor Cozmo sighed. "No, we don't. The bandits took them, the Fossil Maniac and I tired to chase after them but they were too fast. They could be anywhere in the Hoenn Region now. You and Steven were knocked out good, it took about a hour for Steven to wake up, but unfortunately I think you got the blunt of the chemical so you were out for four hours, it's now five o'clock." Brendan glanced over at Steven, he heard Steven's voice but he couldn't make out what he was saying behind the glass.

"Who's Steven talking to?" The Fossil Maniac shrugged. "I have no idea, but before you woke up, your phone rung, Steven picked it up. He's been talking on your phone for the past ten minutes." Brendan's fists balled up as he looked at the two men in panic.

"C... can you please get him over here? I need to talk to whoever it is, I don't want them to panic!" Brendan started breathing quickly again as Professor Cozmo tried to calm him down. The Fossil Maniac got up and walked to the hallway where Steven was and pulled him into the room. Steven physically looked like a mess. His skin was pale, his hair was wild, and Steven's neatly tailored outfit was crinkled and messed up all over.

"Brendan.. it's okay, I've just been talking to Wally, he's worried about you so he's coming over to visit." Brendan looked up at Steven with a pouty expression on his face.

"L.. Let me talk to him, please! I.. I need to hear him, he needs to know that I'm okay." Steven sighed in defeat and handed Brendan his phone.

"Wally?!" Brendan sat up straight in his hospital bed as he tried to listen for his voice.

"_Brendan! Brendan, I heard from Steven that you were attacked! I wish I was there to help... I feel terrible." _A tear dripped down Brendan's cheek, the dream he had earlier was so real, at this point in time he didn't feel like the confident, proud champion that he was, but a vulnerable, wrecked version of himself that he didn't know existed.

"It's okay... you wouldn't have wanted to be there anyways." Brendan sniffled as looked down at his lap. "So um... how was your return home?"

"_Shitty, but that doesn't matter right now. Brendan, Steven said that you have to be watched and supervised for the next 24 hours, when I come to Fallarbor Town, will you please leave with me to Verdanturf so I can take care of you? I have everything set up." _Brendan opened his mouth and closed it as he tried to figure out what to say.

"Wally... really, I'm fine. I don't need to be supervised." Steven gave Brendan a glare and shook his head. "Oh yes you do, according to the nurses." Brendan sighed and began to talk into the phone again.

"A.. alright, I'll come to Verdanturf with you." Wally's voice seemed to increase in pitch as he sounded a little more happy.

"_Okay! I'm making my aunt's chicken noodle soup right now, it'll be ready for you when you're here. I... I love you Brendan, everything is going to be okay." _Brendan bit down hard on his lip to avoid bursting into tears.

"I love you too, goodbye." Brendan slowly pressed the end button and handed it off to Professor Cosmo who slipped the phone back into Brendan's bag. Brendan cleared his throat and looked at Steven, who knelt down by Brendan's bedside.

"Steven, I'm worried. How did those bandits know those fossils were there? They mentioned that they had a boss, do they think they can reanimate those fossils? I... I saw a weird figure go into Team Aqua's old HQ this morning, could that be related to any of this?" Steven sighed and shrugged weakly.

"I don't know, we're going to have to figure that out and reclaim those fossils. We can't risk having another threat on our hands." Brendan nodded at Steven's words.

"But for now, please do as the nurses say and relax for the next 24 hours? We can't afford to have you getting hurt again." Brendan frowned "As much as I don't want to do that, I won't do anything crazy. I'm not going to be very helpful if I somehow fuck up myself even more." Brendan grabbed two handfuls of his hair and sighed. Steven gently patted Brendan's back as he stood up.

"Well... Professor Cozmo, the Fossil Maniac and I have some business to attend to. Rest up Brendan, okay? I'll talk to you soon so we can plot our next move." Brendan nodded and waved as the three men exited his room.

Brendan plopped back down on the bed and looked up at the ceiling as he replayed his dream over and over again in his head. Was that voice some fucked up embodiment that was just in his nightmare, or was it way more than that? Brendan groaned and began to rest his eyes, thinking about it was only going to make the negative vibes in his brain worsen.

((And the plot thickens! My Kalos fic is in the works right now, and I'll of course be continuing to chapter 8. I'll admit, there are a lot of lore pieces that are missing, simply because it has been awhile since I played the Gen 3 games, I have Alpha Sapphire but I still have to finish it. If I screw up on something, feel free to let me know. Thank you for all of your views and support!))


	8. Intoxicating Aromas

"... Are you sleeping?" Brendan perked his eyes wide open as he heard Wally's voice. The wind was cold and sharp when they flew through the air on Wally's Talonflame but that didn't help Brendan stay awake. He let out a yawn and squeezed Wally's wrist as he navigated his Pokemon through the air.

"Kind of... it's been a really shitty, exhausting day." Brendan sighed as he looked down. They flew over a few trees and caves, but nothing too out of the ordinary. Eventually the scenery became green and full of plant life, it became apparent they were getting close to Verdanturf Town. Wally frowned as he focused and pointed downward. "Talonflame, land on that patch of grass!" Wally then turned his head to look at Brendan who was half awake.

"What happened anyways? Steven said you were attacked but didn't really give me the details." The Talonflame landed at what appeared to be the border of the town. They both climbed off the Pokemon as Brendan yawned softly. Wally quickly returned Talonflame to his pokeball before Brendan began talking.

"Well... when I left Lilycove I traveled to Fallarbor Town, I purchased a few supplies and took the route to Meteor Falls, I met Steven and things were pretty regular. We talked, I followed Steven to the fossil excavation site and I met Professor Cozmo and the Fossil Maniac." Wally nodded at Brendan as they both traveled into the town. The sun was setting and the air was fresh. Verdanturf Town was known for it's fragrances and fresh air and it did not disappoint any travelers who tried to visit. The houses looked like log cabins, which made the Pokemart, Pokemon Center and the local Contest Hall stand out. Wally and Brendan then walked in front of one of the more larger log cabins before they stopped at the front door.

"Uh huh, so you saw the fossils right? Did they have any idea of what sort of Pokemon they were?" Brendan smiled at Wally's question as he took his hands in his.

"Well, there was evidence to believe that they were Kyogre and Groudon fossils but there was no way any of us could have been completely sure about it. If we still had the fossils I'm sure Steven would have handed them off to Devon Corp by now, but since they were stolen... there's no way we can know unless we retrieve them back." Wally bit his lip as he turned the door handle of the house.

"So after those thieves battled you, they sprayed you and Steven with the sleep poison and stole the fossils?" Brendan frowned at the question as he followed Wally into the house.

"Yeah... and that's when I had the worst nightmare..." before Brendan could continue talking he heard an older woman speak from the kitchen.

"Wally, Brendan! Glad you made it home safely." The middle aged woman had dark brown hair that was in a bee hive haircut and wore a sage green dress that was covered by an apron. She walked from the kitchen to the front of the house and hugged Wally tightly, which was quite a scene considering that Wally was still a pretty thin-set person next to this big boned woman.

"Thank you Aunt Trish." Wally replied. The woman grinned at the two young men and gestured for them to come further inside as she closed the door behind them.

"Wally, I just want to let you know that I checked on your soup. It's almost done and it's almost as good as mine. I'm so proud of you!" Wally smiled at his aunt "Great! I'll pour Brendan a bowl." Wally quickly rushed to the pot in the kitchen as if he just cooked up his greatest creation. Wally's aunt affectionately patted Brendan on the shoulder.

"So I heard all about your new budding relationship. Congratulations! Wally was so happy and excited when he talked about you. You've always brightened up his day, you know? For the past six years." Brendan blinked in surprise at Aunt Trish's comment. He never knew that Wally told anyone.

"He um... he makes me very happy too ma'm." Brendan tried to think up something romantic or cute to say but he managed to fail miserably. "He's like the... Shellder to my Slowpoke which um... makes it evolve.. heh." The aunt just grinned at Brendan as if she didn't notice how much of a dork he really was.

"That's great! I love romance." All of a sudden her tone started to get dark. "But if you hurt my nephew, ever, I promise you that I will kick you right in the pokeballs, you understand me?" Brendan attempted to keep a straight face on but his emotion was just utter horror as he imagined his balls getting kicked by that lady. He gulped and nodded.

"Of course ma'm, I'd never hurt Wally, I love him to death, h.. he's my everything." The darkness all of a sudden faded as a smiled crept back on the lady's face.

"Good! That's how it should be." Wally came back from the kitchen with a bowl of soup which filled the room with a delicious aroma. The aunt went back to her default grin and headed back to the kitchen.

"Have fun boys! Don't forget to use condoms!" Wally squinted his eyes in embarrassment as he heard his aunt. He dropped his head and gestured for Brendan to follow him down the hallway to his room.

"Eh... sorry, my aunt can be pretty blunt at times." Brendan let out a nervous laugh, the image of his groin getting kicked was still clear in his head.

"I.. it's okay. So! You told your aunt?" Wally nodded as he opened the last door in the hallway which led to his room.

"Yeah... things were a little messy at my parent's house when I came back home, so I decided to stay with my aunt and uncle. I told them all about us and they were very accepting." Brendan sighed as he plopped his entire body down on the bed. Wally's room at his aunt and uncle's looked like your typical teenager's room. Pokemon posters adorned the walls and a cabinet full of contest ribbons was resting in a corner of the room. Wally sat down on the bed with the soup in his lap. He smirked as he jokingly tried feeding the soup to Brendan, which surprisingly worked. After a few bites of the chicken noodle soup, Brendan started to speak.

"Thank you for feeding me daddy." he stuck his tongue out at Wally as he covered his face with his palm.

"You're welcome I guess." Wally handed Brendan the soup, which he continued to eat on his own. "So your nightmare, what was that like?" Brendan frowned as he remembered what they were talking about before they encountered Wally's aunt. He sighed as he took another sip.

"Well... I was in this really dark room. It felt and smelled moist, kind of like a cave that was near water. Then this voice started taunting me and messing with me... it was horrible. Then this bright light hurt my eyes and I was on the route outside of Verdanturf, you were with me." Wally nodded slowly as he listened to Brendan carefully.

"And then?"

"Anyways... we hugged, it felt really real to me. Then you started coughing. I thought you were having an asthma attack so I tried to look for your inhaler in your bag but then it got worse, you started coughing blood. I never saw you cough blood before. I panicked and called for help, but no one was there and the voice just laughed at me. Finally you fell over and it looked like you were dying and... and there was no way I could have helped you... I felt useless." The feelings of sadness and defeat that he felt earlier back in Fallarbor Town started to kick back in. Brendan quickly covered his entire face as tears dripped out of his eyes, down his cheeks. Brendan didn't want Wally to see him like this, even though it was already too late. Wally took the bowl of soup which was almost empty and set it down on the floor as he grabbed Brendan into a hug.

"Brendan... that voice wasn't real and I'm the healthiest I have ever been. I know it may have been really real to you, but in actuality it was just a dream." Brendan laid back down as Wally rested his head on Brendan's chest and cuddled into him. He rested his eyes and ran his fingers through Wally's hair as he tried to calm down.

"You know... the sickest thing about that dream was that there was something familiar about that voice, as if I heard it from somewhere but I just can't seem to pin point who it is." Wally looked up at Brendan as he stayed in the same position and reached out to caress his cheek.

"Or it could be a figment of your imagination just trying to haunt you." Wally smiled as he stared into Brendan's eyes. Brendan let out a small chuckle "Yeah, you're probably right, I love you Wally. That soup was really good, you should try to cook more often." Wally carefully climbed up and sat on top of Brendan as he laid on his back.

"Thank you, I only learned from the best teacher, my aunt." he let out a small laugh as he leaned in and kissed Brendan deeply. He made the kiss quick and pulled away, only for Brendan to pull him back in aggressively. Wally muffled a laugh at Brendan's assertiveness as Brendan tugged at Wally's hair. Brendan then growled into Wally's mouth as he attempted to unbutton Wally's white button downed shirt but froze as he heard the cute cry of a familiar Pokemon.

Brendan glanced over to his right and saw that Wally's Azumarill walked into the room from the bathroom that was next door. Normally Brendan was usually happy to see any of Wally's Pokemon, but this time he just glared daggers at the rabbit water, fairy type Pokemon who interrupted him. Wally leaned back up to look at his Azumarill who seemed very happy to see him. Wally laid back down by Brendan's side as his Azumarill squeezed in between the both of them. Wally laughed softly as Azumarill nuzzled into his cheek, which made Brendan feel a tinge of jealousy but gently petted the affectionate Pokemon until it drifted off to sleep. Wally grabbed a Pokeball from his messenger bag that was laying on the side and returned Azumarill before going back to cuddling Brendan.

"Sorry... Azumarill likes to play outside of his Pokeball, so I usually let him wander around the house and with me when I travel." Brendan gently ran his fingers through Wally's hair and smiled as if it was no big deal.

"No problem! Eh... sorry about earlier, I guess I just felt really mischievous." Wally laughed and nuzzled into Brendan's chest.

"No... it's fine, I like when you're aggressive and forward." Wally's cheeks all of a sudden began to flush red. "I um... kind of have a question though um... just curious, w.. when would you w.. want to have sex?" Brendan's eyes widened at Wally's question as he began to blush just as worse as Wally.

"I um... w.. we just started dating 24 hours ago, why are you asking me this now?" Brendan felt surprised, anxious, and strangely excited all at the same time. So much had happened in the past two days and now he was thrown off by the sex question.

"Well, it's um.. good to set boundaries you know? That goes for any type of relationship." Brendan slowly nodded, Wally was right.

"I.. I guess we should take it slow, we don't want to rush things. Plus the stuff with the stolen fossils, my job as Champion, the constant attention I get as Champion... it's a lot for me, so if we take our time, it'd help me be more at ease. You're the only thing in my life right now that makes sense, as of right now I wouldn't want to complicate it with sex... not that sex would ever complicate it, but like I said, we just started dating so I say we wait and I think we'll know in our hearts and minds when the time comes, sound good?" Wally smiled at Brendan's answer as he brushed a few strands of Brendan's hair from his face.

"Sounds good, I love you Brendan. I'd stay up with you, but I'm exhausted." Wally let out a small yawn as he got up from the bed and grabbed a pair of shorts and a t-shirt from his dresser before he went into the bathroom to change. Brendan quietly mouthed 'I love you too' before quickly changing into the same pair of sweatpants that he wore the other night and climbed back into the bed. Once Wally was out of the bathroom he shut the lights off and climbed in with Brendan.

"Goodnight Wally... I'll see you in the morning." Brendan whispered as he slowly began to drift off.


	9. The Mishap of Mister B

_Brendan rode his bike along the smoothly paved road. The clean air was refreshing and the sun was high up in the sky. This would've been a fantastic day to travel, but he had a lot of work to get done in the area. First, he was going to visit Wally at his uncle's house and then he was going to take on Wattson, the Mauville City gym leader. He battled trainers on Route 117 and it was a typical day on his Pokemon adventure but at the same time he felt bad. Wally took it so hard on himself when he lost, maybe Brendan should have encouraged him to battle Wattson, but at the same time Wally needed a strong team. Gym leaders were no walk in the park. _

_Brendan pressed down on the brake of his bike as he came upon the border of the small village known as Verdanturf Town. He carefully climbed off his bike and folded it up before putting it in the large compartment of his bag. He wandered around the small town curiously. The biggest building in the entire town was the contest hall, otherwise it was just small log houses, a Pokemon Center, and a Pokemart but what Brendan noticed the most was the lush green grass that was squishy against his feet and the fresh scents of nature. He understood how this place could be an area of healing, especially for someone as ill as Wally. _

_He then traveled southward to the log houses. Wally's uncle didn't say which house was his. There were only a few houses in town but he thought it would've been better if he had an address. Brendan randomly wandered to the biggest house in the neighborhood and gave it's door a small knock. He mentally crossed his fingers because he didn't want to end up coming up to some random stranger's house. _

_The door's knob gave a small creaking noise as it turned and slowly opened the door, revealing the partially balding, stocky looking man that was Wally's uncle. Brendan sighed in relief, he thought he was extremely lucky that he picked the correct house. The man slowly formed a grin on his face._

"_Well hello there! Glad you could visit, come on in." Brendan followed the middle aged man inside and saw a woman in a long red dress with long sleeves and an apron by the kitchen sink. _

"_This is my wife Trish, glad we could have you Brendan." the woman turned her head and gave the young traveling trainer a friendly smile before turning back to cleaning her dishes. _

"_Now, something just occurred to me, were you the boy who stopped those Aqua thugs from taking over the museum down in Slateport? That's very heroic! It seems like you're a very skilled trainer." Brendan shrugged at the man's question and comment before responding. _

"_Thanks, but I don't really think I'm that heroic, I was just doing what I thought was right." Brendan held on tightly to his yellow backpack straps as Wally's uncle looked down at him. _

"_Well, what you did was very brave indeed. Oh! Wally's in his room, you're free to stay as long as you want. If you need anything just let me know!" Brendan smiled politely as he turned his heel toward the hallway of bedrooms. _

"_Thank you sir." Brendan carefully walked down the wooden floors, afraid that his dirty running shoes were going to ruin them. The house had a very cozy feel to it, as if it were a snug candle shop with comforting scents. Brendan made it down to the very end of the hall to a room with a door that was half way open. He took a peek in and noticed the small green haired boy in the corner of the room packing items into a tan messenger bag. He carefully tip toed closer to the door before accidentally pushing the door, which made a small creaking noise. Wally quickly froze, clearly startled by the noise before slowly turning his head to see who was at the door._

"_Oh! Um.. hey Brendan, come in." Brendan quietly made his way into Wally's bedroom and shut the door behind him before looking curiously at the scene. _

"_What are you packing?" Wally sighed in defeat as he sat down on his bed._

"_I'm leaving." Brendan blinked in confusion._

"_You're what?"_

"_I said I'm leaving, I'm going to travel just like you and train Ralts so that maybe one day I'll be just as tough as you. You taught me something in Mauville City today, if I'm to truly master Pokemon and to figure out my place in life, then I should go do it on my own and not have my family make decisions for me. Ever since I met you and traveled to Verdanturf town, I have felt stronger. I need to discover my true potential." Wally smiled weakly as he folded his hands in his lap. Brendan looked down at Wally and nodded slowly._

"_Do your aunt and uncle know about this?" Wally laughed nervously and shook his head._

"_No.. they don't, please don't tell them. I need to do this on my own. When I figure things out, I'll come back to them." Wally's smile grew bigger as he slowly stood back up in front of Brendan. _

"_I want to promise you something though. I'm going to train my hardest, I will not give up, and when we both have all eight badges I will challenge you again, with a full team at my side. You have my word." Brendan scratched the back of his neck. _

"_I'm not even sure if I'm going to get that far. I think I'm lucky just to have two badges." Wally took Brendan's hands into his and looked up at him with a serious expression. _

"_I believe in you Brendan. You can do it, you can make it all the way to the Pokemon League. You just have to continue to have the will to get better and to continue on your journey." Brendan laughed softly, Wally's words were surprisingly reassuring. _

"_Thanks bud. Alright, I'll see you at the very top!"_

"_You got it rival, now don't tell my aunt and uncle okay?" _

_Brendan let out a louder chuckle. "Okay... I won't, I promise." _

Brendan slowly opened his eyes. At first the whole room was a blur but Brendan eventually focused in as the light shimmered through the blinds. He groaned and slowly stretched his arms as he sat up, Wally wasn't in the bed with him so he figured that he woke up first before him. Brendan glanced at the alarm clock on the nearby nightstand – 10:30 am. He sighed and tugged at his hair, he slept in late. He carefully climbed out of bed and was shocked at how cold the floors were compared to his bare feet.

He stretched his body even more as he traveled from Wally's bedroom to the hallway and stopped as he heard the sound of giggling down the hall. Brendan followed the voices until he reached one of the bedrooms. The door was opened by a crack, which allowed for Brendan to take a look inside. Wally was sitting next to his cousin Wanda while they were staring at a computer screen. Wanda looked a lot like her mother, except she had no bee hive haircut. Her chestnut brown hair flowed down her back, and like Wally, she had soft blue gray eyes. She also had a small baby bump that showed through her blue sun dress, but it still looked like she was in the early stages of pregnancy.

"Wally, what color do you think the walls should be? Periwinkle? Yellow?" Wally rubbed his chin in thought as he scrolled down the web page with the mouse.

"I don't know, I sort of like tangerine orange, it seems like a very gender neutral color to me, plus it's bright and cheerful! Maybe the room could be Charmander themed?" Wanda grinned and hugged Wally tightly.

"Thank you so much Wally, I don't think I could do all this planning without you." Wally smiled and hugged his cousin back.

"No problem Wanda, anything for you! You helped me out through so much when I was really ill... You've always wanted to be a mother and you're finally getting your wish, which makes me so happy!" he laughed softly as he slowly let go of Wanda.

"I'm curious as to what you have planned for the baby shower." Wanda looked at Wally curiously as he stuck his tongue out.

"I ain't telling you a thing! It's all going to be a surprise, but I can promise you that you'll have the best shower ever." The cousins laughed together which only made Brendan smile. Wally was clearly having a good time shopping online for Wanda's nursery and he didn't want to disrupt any of it. Brendan slowly took a step backward but froze as he realized that Wanda was staring right at him from her position.

"Hey Wally, Mister B, stage right." Brendan's eyes widened in horror, he didn't want them to think he was some weirdo that was spying on them. He quickly backed up but tripped over some sort of round object. He went flying and landed on his back. He squinted his eyes in pain and laid on the wooden floor with a defeated look on his face. He glanced to his side only to notice that the round object he tripped on was Azumarill who looked unharmed but very angry as it made loud squeals and noises at Brendan as if he was telling him off. Wally quickly walked out of the bedroom and gasped as he noticed Brendan sprawled out on the floor.

"Oh Arceus, are you okay?!" Wally knelt down beside Brendan as he formed large, dopey smile.

"Did I just die? Because I think I see an angel." Wally sighed and covered his face with his palm before checking Brendan's head.

"Do you hurt anywhere?" Brendan smiled weakly "Maybe a little bit, but I'm fine really." Wally then held up three fingers in front of Brendan.

"How many fingers am I holding up?" Brendan smirked "Six! Nah.. just kidding, I see three." Wally groaned as he helped Brendan stand up, at this point Azumarill was just standing there, watching his master tend to the patient.

"Brendan, you scared the shit out of me." Wally stared up at Brendan as he gently caressed Wally's face and then bent his neck downward as he gave Wally's shoulder a sniff.

"... Is that the scent of roses? You smell really good!" Wally laughed and shook his head.

"Yeah.. it's Roselia body wash." Brendan ran his fingers through Wally's hair.

"Mister B hm..?" Wally laughed softly in embarrassment.

"It's some dorky nickname that Wanda made up, sorry." Brendan smiled and shrugged.

"I don't mind nicknames." Wanda wandered outside of the bedroom from behind Wally.

"Everything okay? All I heard was a huge thump and then Azumarill squealing loudly." Wanda looked at both of them curiously as Brendan looked over at her.

"I just fell, I'm alright." Brendan frowned in thought, both Wanda and Wally were already dressed and he was still in his sleepwear.

"Um.. well I guess I should take a shower and get ready." Wally perked up and squeezed Brendan's hands as he slowly rocked them.

"Okay! I was thinking we could go to that new diner that opened up in Mauville, they have an amazing brunch menu." Brendan smiled at Wally's suggestion.

"Sounds great, I'll be ready in about twenty minutes or so." Brendan unattached his hands from Wally's and walked down the hall to the bathroom, slowly closing the door behind him. A day in Mauville sounded refreshing, especially after what happened yesterday. Brendan curiously climbed in the shower with his clothes still on to check out all of the products that were inside. He immediately found the Roselia body wash which was in a pink bottle with a picture of a Roselia on it. He opened the bottle and gave the substance a sniff, nodding contently as he started to read the bottle.

"_Let out your inner goddess with the power of Roselia Body Wash. With invigorating scents such as lilac, rosewood, and lavender, you can feel pampered every day." _

Brendan blushed and snickered as he stared down at the bottle. He then began to raise his voice to get Wally's attention.

"Hey Wally! You're always a beautiful goddess to me, even without this body wash!" Brendan heard Wally in his bedroom, which was next door.

"Just take your shower already!" Brendan let out a chuckle as he heard Wally respond.

"Okay! Sorry, I love you my goddess!"

"I love you too, my fairy princess!" Brendan froze at Wally's comeback before snickering and covering his face with his palm.


	10. What Kind of Name is Kail?

((Warning, I do not own the characters from Pokemon. They belong to Gamefreak/Nintendo etc. I also do not own Kail Murkado, he is an OC that belongs to my boyfriend, however I do own Tori Winter. Enjoy!)) 

The distance from Verdanturf Town to Mauville City was a short bike ride away. Wally and Brendan sped their way down the paved roads until they reached the automatic glass doors. Thanks to the town's gym leader, Wattson, Mauville had been renovated from the ground up. It was now an indoor city with a few outdoor plazas that almost resembled a shopping mall, which made this place a mecca for tourists and adventurers alike.

Wally and Brendan parked their bikes and locked them up on a bike rack before heading down the long, wide hallways. Much like a shopping plaza, ambient music played throughout the halls as people walked back and forth from the different businesses. Brendan had no idea where this new diner was so he followed Wally as he held his hand.

"Hey... you never told me why you decided to leave Petalburg for your aunt and uncle's after the Pokemon contest. Did your parents do something really bad?" Brendan looked down at Wally curiously as he sighed and shook his head.

"I'd rather not talk about it, but I can't keep it in forever..." Wally stared down at the tile floors of the city as Brendan wrapped his arm around Wally's back.

"You don't have to tell me now if you don't want to." Wally then stopped in front of a business with the picture of a Snorlax eating a burger on it's sign.

"No... I do. You're the only person I feel comfortable telling this to." Wally faced Brendan as Brendan kept his arm around Wally. Brendan remained silent and went into listening mode. Wally's body started to shake as he began to talk.

"W.. well... I flew back home on Talonflame after I checked out of the Cove Lily Motel." Wally paused for a moment to clear his throat before speaking again. "And um... my parents were fighting, but it had become a usual thing for me at that point. What caught me off guard was that... my dad punched my mom. She fell to the ground and dad just went back to watching TV. I... I thought she was out, but she got up, told me that everything was fine, except it wasn't fine. I... never thought that my dad would ever hurt my mom." Wally sniffled and dug his head into Brendan's red and black shirt, which became wet with tears. Brendan ran his fingers through Wally's hair as he led him to a nearby bench. He set Wally down on his lap as he allowed for him to cuddle into his chest.

"Wally, can you please do yourself a huge favor and report this to the police?" Brendan paused in thought as he ran his fingers up and down Wally's back. "What if your mom never gets back up again? What if he hurts you? You don't deserve this at all. I.. it would kill me if you were somehow hurt, you know? You did the right thing though... leaving for Verdanturf." Brendan sighed and rested his head on top of Wally's as he sat and continued to soak in the information.

"Y.. you're right, I should. I'm sorry for filling you with my problems, especially after what happened to you yesterday. I... I feel so weak and powerless." Wally dropped his head but Brendan gripped Wally's chin and forced it back up again as he stared into Wally's blue-gray eyes.

"You are not weak. You have more strength and kindness in your finger than most people have in their entire body. You saw your mom get punched, yet you still flew to Fallarbor, picked me up from the Pokemon Center, made me chicken noodle soup, and took care of me. You showed me nothing but love and hospitality after the bullshit that you had to deal with earlier that day. That's true strength, and that's why I love you Wally. I wish I would've told you my feelings sooner." Wally smiled at Brendan's words and gave him a small peck on the lips as they continued to gaze at each other.

"I love you too Brendan. We make a really good team huh?" he laughed softly as he started to play with Brendan's hat.

"Yeah, we do." Brendan squeezed Wally tightly as he looked over at the entrance of the diner.

"Hey, we're both pretty upset. Want to go get some food? Food's the best medicine in my opinion." Wally giggled at Brendan's suggestion as he slowly got up from his lap.

"Yeah! Let's go." Brendan and Wally made their way inside the diner and immediately noticed that the place was jam packed. Brendan instinctively rushed to the first booth he saw and sat down with Wally following after him. Wally smiled happily and rested his head on Brendan's shoulder as he eyed the menu.

"I kind of feel like having a large chocolate shake... want to share?" Wally asked. Brendan played with Wally's hair as he flipped through his menu.

"Sure, I'd like that." Brendan sat back in the booth as he looked down at Wally.

"So, when are you going to challenge the league?" Brendan smirked as he rubbed his knuckle against Wally's head. Wally laughed softly as he held onto Brendan.

"Honestly? I don't think I will, you win most of our battles and even if I did win and become champion, I wouldn't want to steal your thunder. That's your title to keep, not mine." Brendan nodded in thought at Wally's answer.

"Okay... but I wouldn't feel like you stole my thunder. Champion or not, I'm still really proud of you." Brendan smiled and kissed Wally gently on the forehead. A waitress came by and took their drink order as Brendan and Wally curiously watched all the patrons in the restaurant. Wally gasped as he noticed a very pretty looking Ninetales next to a red headed young man in dark clothes. He didn't look that much older than Brendan.

"Oooo Brendan, look! That Ninetales looks so cool, you know.. we should go to Kanto or Johto sometime, check out the Pokemon there."

Brendan nodded as he eyed the young man and scratched his head from over his hat. "Yeah, that'd be pretty cool." The young man, who was wandering around the restaurant seemed to be looking for a table. He then stopped as a young woman around his age came out of the bathroom with a Weavile and started talking to him. They appeared to be companions since his Ninetales and her Weavile started to play with each other as their trainers were plotting their next move. Wally blinked as he eyed them more closely.

"I think they're trying to find a seat.. I know!" Before Brendan could open his mouth Wally got up and walked toward the couple. Sometimes Brendan thought that Wally was too outgoing for his own good, but it was something that Brendan didn't have, which is why Brendan hated the cameras and the attention he got as champion. Wally continued to talk to the couple and they happily followed behind him as he got back to their booth.

"Hey Brendan! This is Kail and Tori, could they sit down with us?" Brendan smiled weakly and motioned to the seats across from where Wally and Brendan were sitting.

"Yeah, sure go ahead." The couple sat across from them as Brendan carefully eyed the girl. She looked familiar but he couldn't pin point where she was from.

"Hey, do I know you from somewhere?" The girl wasn't being very helpful, since she began to answer Brendan's question with a question.

"Hm... oh! Are you the champion? You look a lot like Champion Brendan." Brendan nodded.

"Good guess! Yeah, I'm a champion, but it's Steven who's mostly the public figure of the Hoenn Region, I mostly just stand in the background unless a challenger comes to challenge the league." The blonde haired, bright blue eyed girl smiled at Brendan's answer.

"Then you probably know me because I was the Mahogany Town gym leader in Pryce's place for awhile while he was out doing some field research, I trained under him when I was a child. I'm from Johto, so is Kail." Brendan looked on at his lunch guests in curiosity as the four ordered their food.

"You're from Johto?! That's super cool." Wally said as he climbed off the booth and walked up to Kail's Ninetales. "Can I pet him?"

"Oh! It's a her. Her name is Kirrin. Go ahead, she's very gentle." Wally smiled as he pet the fox-like pokemon. Kirrin let out a purr of enjoyment as Tori began to question Brendan.

"So I recognized Wally right away from Trainer Talk. The pictures taken of you and Wally were so cute, especially the ones from when you were little, is it true though?" Brendan blinked in confusion.

"What do you mean?" Tori let out a laugh at Brendan's question.

"You know... the love stuff? You -and- him?" Tori smirked as Kail looked at his girlfriend and companion in disbelief.

"Tori!" Kail sighed and pinched the bridge of his nose. Brendan opened his mouth and then closed it.

"Um... well..." He didn't want to say something that Wally was uncomfortable with, but before he could speak, Wally blurted out at the couple.

"Yep! It's true. We just started dating, but we've had feelings for each other for a really long time." Wally climbed back into the booth and sat next to Brendan as the waitress brought everyone's food. The group ate and continued to have mindless chit chat about their past adventures and Pokemon training. Once they were finished, Kail gladly took the bill and paid for the meals. Brendan seemed to think that Kail was a nice guy, but something about him made Brendan want to squeeze his neck. He was courteous, confident, kind, and very good looking. Wally and him seemed to get along as well. Deep down inside, Brendan wished he was just as confident as Kail, especially in the public. Why did he have to be such a chicken? He sighed and followed Wally outside of the restaurant. Both pairs said their goodbyes and went their separate ways. Wally raised an eyebrow at Brendan and glanced up at him.

"Brendan, everything okay?" Brendan clenched his fists and all of a sudden started to have a fit of anger.

"No... who does that Kail guy think he is?" Wally blinked in confusion. "What do you mean?" Brendan then started to rant about things that didn't make sense.

"What was he named after? Kale? The vegetable? And you know.. he looks just like his Ninetales, he might as well be a Ninetales. At least I'm a man, he's a Ninetales!" Wally blinked in astonishment before laughing hysterically.

"Brendan! You're silly... you don't have to be jealous at Kail, you have great qualities too." Brendan sighed and drooped his head as he rested his hand in Wally's.

"Sometimes I question that." Wally began to open his mouth to speak only to be interrupted by the high pitched screams of a young girl. Both Brendan and Wally shot their heads up and ran towards the direction of the screams. When they found the girl, she was sitting on the floor crying with Kail and Tori right next to her. Wally gasped and knelt down to comfort the girl.

"Arceus, what happened here?" The girl sniffled and looked up at Wally.

"They took Muddles... she's my Mudkip. Two meanies stole her, said that her pink coloring was special." The girl burst into tears and threw her arms around Wally as Brendan bent down and started to talk.

"Where did they take Muddles?" The young girl lifted her hand and pointed toward the direction that was headed toward the exit to Route 118. Brendan began to dash in the direction the young girl pointed in with Tori following after him while Wally and Kail stayed behind with the girl. For a girl in high heels, Tori sure knew how to run. Eventually they caught up with the two thieves who were wearing full black body suits and masks. This caught Brendan off guard since they looked so much like the fossil thieves from Meteor Falls. Tori growled and stopped to pull off one of her shoes. Tori carefully aimed and threw the black shoe straight at the man's head who held the shiny Mudkip in tow. The black pump slammed right into the back of the man's head which made him stumble and fall over as the Mudkip broke free and ran behind Brendan and Tori.

His partner managed to get away but the man was too in shock to move as Brendan pinned him down. Tori looked down at the man as he attempted to struggle.

"You bitch!" The thief sneered at Tori but Tori gave him no reaction as she glared down at him. Brendan immediately recognized the man as one of the fossil thieves, so he decided to question him.

"Hey! What did you do to those fossils?" The man rolled his eyes.

"What are you talking about, punk?"

"You know what I'm talking about! The fossils you stole? Where did you take them?" The bandit continued to struggle before answering Brendan's question.

"I took em to my boss, and unfortunately for you, I have no idea where my boss is at the moment. You'll have to find out for yourself. You know... it's too bad, I would've killed you at Meteor Falls if I could, but the boss told me not to." Brendan blinked in confusion at the thief's words.

"Who in the hell is your boss?! Why does he even care about me?" The man shook his head.

"I don't know, I wish I knew!" Tori shook her head and sighed as she picked up the pink Mudkip who was called Muddles.

"We got the girl's Mudkip, we should just let him go." Brendan sighed "Fine.." Brendan stood up and released the man from his grasp. The man coughed as he stood up. "I know one thing though, you are one crazy asshole." and with that the man went through the exit to Route 118. Brendan followed Tori back to the group but after a few steps Tori turned her head.

"You knew that guy?" Brendan shrugged at Tori's question.

"Not really... he stole some fossils that belonged to Steven. I was there when it happened. I find it especially weird that his employer knows me." Tori nodded as they continued to walk.

"I don't know about you, but I'd investigate this. Those two thieves looked up to no good." Muddles let out a cry of happiness as he saw the small girl who was his owner.

Brendan simply shrugged as he watched Pokemon and trainer get reunited.

"You saved Muddles! Thank you!" The girl hugged both Tori and Brendan.

"How can I repay you?" Tori let out a laugh "Don't worry about it hun. Just try to be safe okay?" The girl giggled and nodded.

"Yes ma'm. You are all very nice! I need to go find my mommy now, see ya!" and with that the girl skipped along. Kail, Tori, Brendan, and Wally all said their goodbyes before splitting for the final time.

"Now do you think you're a bad person Brendan?" Wally asked. Brendan let out a chuckle and shrugged. "I don't know, let's just head back to Verdanturf Town, okay?" Wally nodded and squeezed Brendan's hand.

"Okay, sounds good."

((Hey guys! Sorry it took me so long to write the 10th chapter, my dad unfortunately passed away, may he rest in peace. To make up for my absence though I wrote the 10th chapter -and- posted the first chapter of a new story which is called The Future of Destiny's Past. The protagonist is an OC who is the best friend of Gym Leader Bugsy from Johto Region. If you like Johto, Bugsy, or Celebi the legendary Pokemon, I think you should check it out. Has a bit of adventure, has a bit of romance! Otherwise, keep checking in. I'll continue to work on Becoming Brendan. :3 ))


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